VENGEANCE IS MINE

By Charli911 & Larabeelady

Summary: C-SET AU— Story #2 in the C-Set Universe-an old enemy of Vin's come calling; an old friend comes to the rescue.

Disclaimer: The boys (sigh) belong to Trilogy Entertainment and the Mirisch Group

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CHAPTER 1

The shots shattering the window woke Vin Tanner from a deep sleep. He instinctively rolled off the bed and onto the floor, grabbing his gun off the nightstand on the way. He lay on the floor next to the bed, trying to determine how many assailants there were. After a couple of minutes of silence, he moved, crawling on his stomach toward the only, now shattered, window in the room.

He reached the wall under the window, trying to be careful of the broken glass, but feeling the sharp pieces through the thin sweatpants he habitually wore to bed. He hissed as he moved, a sliver working its way into the ball of his feet. He raised himself slowly, just enough to peer out the window. The full moon lit the ground well enough for him to see the corral. He could see nothing out of the ordinary. He concentrated on slowing his breathing, hoping to quiet the
sound of his heart pounding in his ears.

There, footsteps on the front porch. He moved again, this time toward the bedroom door. He'd heard one set of footsteps; hoped he was only dealing with a single person. Still on the floor, lying against the wall, he nudged open the door with his fingers. He winced when the hinge squeaked, but didn't have long to dwell on the noise, since seconds later bullets slammed into the door, ripping it from his hand.

"Shit!" he cried out as he rolled away from the door.

"Tanner! You bastard! You're a dead man!"

Vin didn't recognize the voice, but wasn't about to wait around for an introduction. His sprint toward the window was halted by the deafening explosion that shook the small cabin. He fell against the bed, scrambling to find his footing. He needed to get out of the structure before it burned down around him.

He could hear the whooshing sound from the fire as it consumed his meager belongings. His jeep was parked in the barn and he knew he had to reach it, but he had to get to the front of his small house to do it. He reached the window and using his handgun, scraped most of the remaining glass from the window. He took a deep breath and dived out of the window, falling flat onto the ground. When no shots came his way, he began to crawl toward the front of the cabin.

Another explosion rocked the wood frame, sending debris into the air around him. He was getting his feet under him when a final, horrendous explosion lifted him off the ground, then slammed him back down again. As he hit the ground, he landed next to the outside of the fireplace that made up most of the west wall of his living room. As the noise from the last explosion echoed through the woods, the fireplace stones began to crumble, tumbling down onto the prone figure on the ground.

Vin lay on his back, dazed by the events of the last few minutes. He'd lost his grip on his weapon and was quickly losing his grip on consciousness. As the darkness surrounded him, more of the heavy stones fell around him and covered his body. The last thing he heard before blacking out completely was the maniacal laughter of his assailant. And finally he recognized the devil.

/

Chris Larabee looked at his watch for the tenth time in the last five minutes. He was getting worried. Vin Tanner hadn't shown up to work yet. He was already an hour late and that was not like the former bounty hunter. In the few weeks since Tanner had joined their team he was usually the first one in the office every morning, beating even Casey. And he lived further away than any of the others.

They had tried to raise him on his cellphone, but got no answer. That in itself was not a concern, since Vin was still getting used to carrying it and often forgot to charge it. And he didn't have a regular phone. He lived so high into the mountains that phone lines didn't run that far.

What concerned them was that he wasn't answering the short wave radio. Since that was Vin's main means of communication when he was at his cabin, it was always turned on. Of course there was always the chance that he'd been in the barn when they'd tried to call him, but that was unlikely since Casey had been calling pretty much every five minutes for an hour.

Chris stood up and walked out his office door, grabbing his coat along the way. The other five waited for him, near Casey's desk, ready to follow him.

Buck Wilmington slipped his coat on. "You think something's happened to him, don't you?"

"He's never late, Buck, you know that."

"We agree with you Chris," Josiah Sanchez said, pulling gloves on.

Chris nodded his gratitude. "Casey, keep trying him on the radio and his cell. If you get hold of him, let me know."

"Will do, Chris."

Ezra Standish pulled his wool coat on over his suit coat. "I have already procured aerial transportation, Mr. Larabee. But we won't have a suitable landing zone once we reach Mr. Tanner's abode."

"I know, but at least you can get us a fast overview of the area. Take Josiah and Nathan with you. JD and Buck will go with me in my truck." He noted that Nathan Jackson, their resident paramedic, already carried his medical bag. He only hoped it wasn't needed.

"Let's ride, boys!"

/

They'd been on the road for about forty-five minutes when the radio squawked.

"Eagle to Ground, Eagle to Ground, do you copy?"

Buck picked up the radio microphone from the seat next to him and replied to Josiah's call. "Go ahead, Eagle."

"Ground, we're about five minutes out and are seeing black smoke from the vicinity of Vin's cabin. We can't tell for sure yet if that's what's on fire."

Chris tightened his grip on the wheel and Buck could see his jaw clench in concern. "Copy Eagle. We'll step it up." They were already traveling faster than was safe on the old county fire road, the only vehicle access to Vin's place. The 'road' was barely wide enough for one car and they lost the last of the asphalt about ten miles back.

"Base to ground. Chris are you there?"

"Stand by one, Eagle," Buck said and switched the radio channel. "Ground to base, go ahead, Casey."

"No luck contacting Vin yet, but I just talked to the Sheriff's Office. They said they had gotten some reports earlier about loud explosions in the area, but because of a landslide, they haven't had anyone available to check it out. Same with the fire department, they've been helping clear the slide. Sheriff Dixon said he can free up a couple of men and start them your way and to let him know if you need more."

"Copy that, Casey. Did you copy Josiah's transmission?"

"Affirmative. I'll let the fire department know, see if they can free someone up. Let me know if there's any danger of forest fire."

"Copy." Wilmington switched back over just as Josiah called again.

"Eagle to Ground. We're overhead. It's Vin's place. There's nothing left of the cabin, Buck!" Sanchez's concerned was easily heard over the airwaves.

"And Vin?" Buck asked, glancing at Larabee and seeing the jaw tighten even more.

"No movement down there….no wait…I see, what the hell…is that a wolf?"

"Josiah, did I copy that, a wolf?"

"Ah, yeah, a wolf or a huge dog, it's pawing at the ground near the shambles of the house. We'll see if we can get a shot at it."

"NO! Josiah, wait. Is this wolf black with a silver streak down the back?" Buck asked anxiously, ignoring the curious look he got from Chris.

"Ah…well, yes it appears that it is. What's going on, Buck?"

"That wolf is actually a hybrid. A wolf-dog. It's been hanging around Vin's place for a couple of years, since he rescued it from an old bear trap. It won't hurt Vin. In fact, take a close look around where she's pawing the ground. She may have found him."

In the helicopter, Nathan picked up a pair of powerful binoculars. Focusing in on the ground, he saw the wolf-dog and the pile of stones she was near. He moved the binoculars slowly around the area the canine was working. His quiet curse alerted the others in the aircraft that he'd found something.

"I see what looks like a body under the rubble on the north side. And it's not moving," Nathan reported.

"We'll be there in less than ten minutes," Buck acknowledge.

Chris pressed down on the accelerator. The big truck slewed slightly on the dirt before gaining traction.

"I didn't know Vin had a pet wolf," JD remarked from the back seat.

"She's not really a pet," Buck explained. "It's more wild than anything. Vin thinks it either got lost while its owners were up here camping or the owners released it up here on purpose. Vin freed it from the trap and nursed it back to health. And in return, the animal kind of adopted him. She doesn't much like other people though, so will probably take off as soon as we pull up."

Buck caught himself from falling into Chris, as the team leader took the final curve too quickly. They could now smell the smoke from the burning cabin. As they cleared the trees, they finally caught sight of the house…or what was left of it. The east wall was still partially standing, but everything else was on the ground. Small fires could be seen in the debris and pieces of wood were smoldering all over the small clearing.

Chris slammed on the brakes. "Oh, my God!" Buck exclaimed. They stared at the destruction for several long seconds before Chris pulled the rest of the way to the house and threw the truck into park, jumping out and racing toward the rubble. Buck and JD were right behind him.

Off to the left, on the north of the cabin, Vin's horse, Elmer, was nervously dancing in the corral. He whinnied as the men ran closer. JD carefully approached, hoping to calm the horse down so he didn't hurt himself. Buck and Chris headed to the side of the house where Josiah had seen the animal.

As they got closer, they could hear the canine whimpering. They slowed down, not wanting to spook it. Chris stopped, putting out an arm to halt Buck beside him. Then he took a couple cautious steps closer.

"Careful, Chris," Wilmington warned. Under the rubble, they could now see an arm and tufts of long brown hair blowing in the slight breeze, Vin's face uncovered, his eyes closed.

"Easy girl," Chris said softly to the creature. He moved to within a few feet then crouched down and reached out his hand. "I'm not gonna hurt him, we're here to help." As he leaned forward, stones next to him moved, startling the wolf-dog. She growled and moved into a protective stance over the injured man.

"It's okay, girl, I didn't mean to scare you. I just want to help." Chris waited as the animal warily watched them, then began sniffing, stepping closer to Larabee's outstretched hand. When Chris didn't move, the wolf got closer, finally licking Chris' hand. Carefully, the blond man reached up and scratched behind the animal's ear, then moved closer and knelt down next to Vin.

The wolf began whimpering again, as if pleading with the man to help her friend. She lowered her muzzle to nudge Vin's head like she was trying to wake the injured man up. Chris continued to pet the animal as he reached out his other hand to feel for a pulse. "Let's help Vin, okay girl?" he said to the animal.

"Hey, Cowboy, can you hear me?" Chris asked, laying his hand on the side of Vin's neck. He released a sigh of relief when he felt the regular beat against his fingers.

"Chris?" Buck inquired.

"He's alive," came the soft reply.

"I'll let Nathan know," the big man said and ran back to the truck.

"C'mon Vin, wake up for me," Chris implored, lightly tapping the unconscious man on the face.

Buck returned with a bottle of water and a towel and handed them to Larabee. Then he started removing the large stones that covered his friend. Chris poured some of the water onto the towel and wiped it across Tanner's face, continuing to plead with him to wake up.

"Chris!" JD yelled, running up to the three men. He stopped when the wolf growled.

"Easy, kid," Buck said, "don't spook her."

"Sorry."

"What is it, JD?"

"Josiah said they spotted a car parked about twelve miles from here, looks out of place. They were able to get a plate and ran it. It's stolen. They called the Sheriff and let them know what's going on. Ezra is going to drop Nathan nearby. He can't land, but they have a rope ladder on board, so they should be able to get in close. They said not to move Vin until Nathan can check him out."

"Thanks, JD. We're gonna need to take him out in my truck. There's some blankets in the back seat. Can you dig them out for me and put them in back where Nathan can use them?" Dunne nodded and ran off.

Chris and Buck finished digging Vin out as they heard the helicopter fly overhead and descend until it was about thirty feet off the ground. It startled the wolf and she scampered into the nearby forest. Chris bent over Vin's face with his body, protecting him from the dirt and debris sent flying by the winds from the rotor blades. A rope ladder dropped from the open door and Nathan started down. As soon as he hit the ground, Josiah lowered his medical bag to him on a rope. He dropped the end of the rope to Jackson, then pulled the ladder back into the chopper and Ezra guided it away.

The medic rushed over to Vin's side and began checking him over as the brought the others up-to-date. "We called an ambulance, it's gonna meet us at the crossroads. Ezra contacted the Sheriff. They got some men on the way now. Said to let them know if we want to start a full call-out for the search." Nathan continued to access Vin's injuries as he talked. "Ezra and Josiah will stay airborne and start doing a grid search to see if they spot anybody in the area, especially near the car. Buck, find me a flat board we can carry him on. I want to keep his back straight when we move him."

"Got it, Doc," Wilmington nodded and left to check the barn, knowing that the wood around the house would more than likely be weakened by the fire or burned too badly to be useful.

"How is he, Nate?" Chris asked.

"Well, looks like he's probably got a concussion. Won't know how serious until we get him to the hospital. His left wrist is broken. He's got some bruising around the ribs, but it doesn't look like any are broken. X-rays will confirm that. And there is some swelling around his right knee. He also has some superficial burns on his chest, not too bad, but they'll need to be cleaned good." Nathan removed a metal splint from his bag and secured it around Vin's broken wrist. He also cleaned and bandaged a cut on Vin's forehead, a temporary measure since the cut was deep enough to require stitches.

Buck and JD returned with a long piece of wood that appeared to be half of an old door. Chris and Nathan carefully tilted Vin onto his side, keeping his head and body aligned, while JD and Buck slid the wood underneath. As they got him settled onto their makeshift stretcher, Vin let out a low moan. Nathan checked him again, talking softly to see if they could rouse the sharpshooter. Getting no response, he went back to securing his head from moving by wrapping long pieces of gauze around his head and the wood, tying it off to keep it secured.

Each man took a corner and they lifted, walking toward the truck with their burden, dodging the rubble strewn across the yard. They carefully slid the patient into the back of the truck. The movement jostled Vin and he moaned again.

"Vin, can you hear me?" Nathan asked laying a hand on Tanner's forehead. Getting no response, the medic checked Vin's pupils again, which forced a soft cry from the injured man.

Chris climbed in and knelt down on the opposite side of his friend. "Hey, Cowboy, wake up." Larabee rested his hand on Vin's chest, well away from any bruises or burns. Gently rubbing his knuckles on the bare skin, Chris continued to talk to him.

"C'mon, Vin, open your eyes, talk to me." After several long moments, Tanner's eyes fluttered. "That's it, Cowboy, wake up."

A louder moan escaped Vin's lips as his eyelids opened, then slammed shut against the bright sun. Chris moved to block the light. "Try it again, Vin."

Slowly, Tanner opened his eyes once more, just slits against the smoke darkened skin. When he realized the sun wasn't a problem, he opened them fully, and found himself staring up at Larabee.

"Chris," he mumbled.

"Yeah, Vin, we're here. You're gonna be alright. We're getting ready to take you to the hospital."

"Get the bas'ard?" Vin asked.

"No, not yet. Did you see who it was?"

"Grissom."

"Shit!" Chris exclaimed, shaking his head at Nathan's questioning glance. "Don't worry, Vin. We'll find him. You just rest and listen to Nathan, okay?"

"Hurts, Chris," he hissed and closed his eyes again.

"Where does it hurt, Vin?" Nathan asked.

A few seconds went by in silence, causing the others to think he might have passed out again. Then his tongue poked out to move across his dry lips. His voice was raspy and his breathing harsh as he tried to answer Nathan's question.

"Head…side," he said, taking shallow breaths between each word. "And my arm….leg…Chris…" the last was almost a plea.

"You're gonna be fine, Cowboy," Larabee told him.

"Find 'im, Chris….hurt som'n else."

"We'll find him," Chris assured him.

"We gotta go, Chris," Nathan insisted. A nod was his only reply. Larabee jumped from the truck. Reaching back in, he touched his friend's arm.

"Take care of him, Nate. JD, you drive," he said. "Buck, let's take a look around, see if we can find out which way that asshole went." Larabee grabbed the hand held radio that Nathan handed him, so that he could keep in contact with the helicopter. He and Chris watched the truck drive away until Buck reached over and softly tapped his boss on the arm, diverting his attention from his injured friend.

"Let's go, pard. The faster we find this guy, the faster we can get to the hospital." Chris glanced over at his oldest friend and gave him a small smile. Chris updated Josiah and Ezra about Vin's condition and about the suspect. He also told them to contact the Sheriff's Search team. Then he and Buck started walking around the property, looking for any sign of the man who hurt Vin.

"So who's Grissom?" Buck asked a couple minutes later.

"A lowlife that Vin brought in during his bounty hunting days."

"I don't remember that name." Buck knew that Tanner had worked mainly out of Northern California and Nevada but was in such demand that it hadn't been unusual for him to venture to most of the western states after a fugitive.

"It was a Texas case. A friend of his who works for the Texas Rangers requested his help in bringing back a million-dollar bail jumper. He didn't originally hire on for the bounty on that one, but did it as a favor to his friend."

"A million bucks? Bounty hunters usually draw ten percent of the bail. Damn, that woulda netted him a hundred grand!"

"Yeah. His buddy convinced him to take it after he'd spent a month chasing the guy. He said he used that money to buy this property up here."

"For that kind of bail, it had to be a murder case," Buck remarked.

"Multiple murders, actually. Including two cops and a firefighter. But the Rangers got information that he'd booked to Canada and you know how our northern neighbors are about sending back anyone who would be facing the death penalty. And the prosecutor and the victim's family were insisting on that. But the Rangers couldn't pursue him."

"And Vin could. Who did he kill besides those three?"

"A family of seven. A girl who had refused to go out with him and her entire family, including her 6-month old sister." The two men were walking an ever-widening circle around the smoldering remains of the cabin as they talked. Periodically one of them would find a book or item of clothing that had been blown clear by the explosions. But almost everything that Tanner had in the house was destroyed.

Chris vowed to save everything he could, once the bastard who'd done this was safely behind bars again. Or six feet under. And Larabee really didn't care which.

"So, this guy escaped?"

"Yeah. Vin's Ranger friend called him day before yesterday to let him know, since the guy had written a number of people over the last couple years he'd been in prison, threatening to kill Vin if he ever got out. Vin came out to my place that night to let me know. We planned to bring you all up-to-date this morning, but…" Chris voiced faded as he took another look at the devastation around him.

"He'll be okay, Chris. You heard Nathan."

"I know. It's just that that sonuvabitch was able to buy his way from a death sentence to life in prison without parole. His father was some bigwig oil guy. He should have been executed."

"How'd he get away?"

A bitter laugh escaped. "According to Vin's friend, some soft hearted…or should I say, soft-headed…judge gave him permission to attend his mother's funeral. His two armed escorts were overpowered and he was whisked away. The family, of course, claims to know nothing about his plans," Chris added sarcastically, stopping to take a deep breath. "The guy is certifiable, Buck. From everything Vin told me, and what I read of the report his buddy sent up, this guy should never have seen the light of day. They should have locked him in a cell and forgot he was there."

Chris rubbed his hands across his face, suddenly weary. His mind returned to the night when Vin had told him everything he knew about the man and the evil he'd done. "He tied up that family and made them watch while he raped their daughter. Then he raped her 12-year old sister too. When he was done with both of them, he tied them up as well. Then he poured gasoline over all of them and lit a match. The neighbors said that they could hear him laugh over the screams of the family as he walked away. He didn't even try to hide."

"What about the cops and firefighter?" Buck asked quietly, stunned.

"Two Homicide detectives and an arson investigator. They went to his home to arrest him. As they busted down the door, they set off some booby-traps. Those three were killed and two other cops were injured. When he finally got to trial, he actually took the stand. Vin went to the trial as a show of support to his friend. Grissom actually joked about "crispy critters" when he was asked about the people he killed."

Silence reigned in the small clearing for the next few minutes as the two men continued to search. Each man imagined the absolute fear that had to have been going through the minds of that family. And each knew that their imaginations could never match reality.

"Here we go," Chris exclaimed, crouching down near the backside of the corral. "Hiking boot tracks. Headed off to the northwest." He pulled the radio from his pocket. "Ground to Eagle."

"Eagle here," Josiah's baritone voiced replied.

"We've found some tracks heading northwest. Buck and I will be following. Let us know if you spot anything between here and that car."

"Copy, Ground. Also be advised, the Sheriff's Search and Rescue is about 30 minutes out. They won't have a K-9 available for another hour though. He advised that he got the teletype on Grissom and is aware of his history. He's also going to bring his bomb squad along to check out the vehicle. And they're getting their chopper in the air as well."

"Received. I want to saturate the area between here and that car, but don't want to overlook other directions just in case. He may have another vehicle stashed nearby or that may not be his car to begin with. I don't want to take any chances with this guy. He's killed law enforcement personnel before."

"Copy that, Chris," Josiah said, ending his transmission. Buck and Larabee headed into the woods, following the tracks.

/