As the sun rose, Nathan stifled a yawn, and stood up and stretch. Cocking his head towards Buck room, the Healer frowned when he heard several thumps and curses from the room.
Opening the door to the room, he frown at what he saw. Buck was against the window of the room, trying to use it to escape. Before he could say anything, Chris came up behind Nathan. Pushing past Nathan, Chris strode into Buck's room, herding the man into a corner of the room and reaching out and capturing the man's chin, so he would have the man's full attention.
When he had Buck's attention, he waited, until he could see the man had calm down, when Buck seem to come back to himself, Chris started to speak. "What the hell are you doing? You promise not to escape and follow our plan."
Buck shook his head, trying to get loose of Chris's grasp, when it didn't work he hiss out. "What plan? Wait for Rails to try to kill me?"
"No, and you know that. We will take him down, but he isn't going to call the shot and no one is going to do it on their own."
As the sun rose, Nathan stifled a yawn, and stood up and stretch. Cocking his head towards Buck room, the Healer frowned when he heard several thumps and curses from the room.
Opening the door to the room, he frown at what he saw. Buck was against the window of the room, trying to use it to escape. Before he could say anything, Chris came up behind Nathan. Pushing past Nathan, Chris strode into Buck's room, herding the man into a corner of the room and reaching out and capturing the man's chin, so he would have the man's full attention.
When he had Buck's attention, he waited, until he could see the man had calm down, when Buck seem to come back to himself, Chris started to speak. "What the hell are you doing? You promise not to escape and follow our plan."
Buck shook his head, trying to get loose of Chris's grasp, when it didn't work he hiss out. "What plan? Wait for Rails to try to kill me?"
Slowly, Buck seem to back to his senses, blinking a few times, he took a deep breath and let it go. Looking at Chris, Buck sigh, "I'm fine, you can let go now."
For a long second, Chris search Buck's eyes for the truth. With a half nod, Chris drop his hand, and backed away. "Good, then we'll get some breakfast and once Vin comes back we'll talk about what we are going to do."
Eying the Man in Black, Buck grinned. "You have a plan?"
"Yes, I have a plan, and if we are lucky, no one will get hurt."
A snort from Nathan had the two men turn to the Healer, Nate grin, "Right, none of us will get hurt, if we get that at lucky, I'll owe everyone a drink, but I'm sure I won't have to pay."
Glaring at Nathan, Chris shook his head, "We'll be fine. We don't always get hurt."
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Vin enter the saloon and spotted the rest of the group at their usually table, joining them, Vin nodded at Chris as a coffee mug was passed to him. "Thanks, not much moving out there."
JD, who can hardly keep quiet ask, "Did you find the spot?"
"Can I get a drink of coffee first?"
JD opened his mouth to say something, when Nathan spoke first. "Yes, and some breakfast. I bet you didn't eat anything today yet and what you want to tell us can wait for the time that you need to eat."
Blinking in surprise, Vin nodded and was about to thank Nate, when Ezra spoke up. "Not to denied Mr. Tanner his nourishment, but I think if he doesn't impart what he found soon, we may have a couple of our compatriots explode due to impatience."
Looking over at Buck and JD, the Tracker grin at the two men. "You might be right Ezra, I can eat and talk and I wouldn't want to be the one that blame for injuring to anyone."
Receiving glares from both Buck and JD, Vin chuckle, and as a breakfast plate was put in front of him, he nodded his thanks to Inez and dug in.
After a couple of hungry bites, Vin took a sip of his coffee and answered the question on everyone's mind. "I found where Rails has been camping. It looks like he is hunker down for the long haul. Also, found a good spot for ya Chris. It is just a little ways past Roundtree Pond, Looks like it used to be a mining camp. If we can get him there, it should work for what you want."
"Good, I was hoping you would find a good place for it. How far away is it from Rails camp?"
Vin grin, "Not that far, about quarter of a mile or so or so, he should feel safe enough."
Chris took a sip of his coffee, and looked over at the rest of the men who were all glaring at Chris and Vin. Glaring at the group, the Man in Black shook his head. "Don't start, you'll hear all of plan, but I don't want any of you heading off to do it. We are only going to have one chance at getting him."
Josiah nodded. "We understand and we won't rush it, but it would be nice to know what the plan is going to be and when we will actual do it."
Grinning slightly, Chris took another sip of whiskey, we are going to draw Rails out into the open and once we have him in the open, we're going to take him down. In order to do it, we need the right bait."
"No!" JD shouted out. With everyone looking at him, he shrug sheepishly. "I just... isn't that just giving Rails what he wants a chance to take out Buck."
"No, it is not what Rails wants. Rails wants to have Buck alone, without any of us there to help him. He wants to be able to take his time with Buck. He won't have the chance; we will draw him out and then stop him."
Nathan, who had been quiet, spoke up. "I have to agree with JD, it sounds like we are giving Rails what he wants. How can we be sure he won't get a shot off, before we can take him down?"
Chris grin, "I wouldn't worry about that, he won't get a chance to touch Buck."
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Rails watch the men all come out of the saloon; lying flat on a nearby roof, he stifled the soft growl of frustration that wanted to escape him. He was tired of playing this mouse and cat game. The only thing holding him here was the one man that had gotten away and made him fail this time.
There were no more rules or things he couldn't do. The others in this town have become nothing but ants. Reaching out, he caress the rifle by his side, He was going to use it, but not now, not after he had failed.
Glaring at the tall dark haired man, Rails snarled slightly, that would be too quick of a death for the man. He needed to suffer, needed to know what Rails would do to his friends when the man was no longer there. He needed to go to his grave knowing that he fail once again to protect his friends.
As the men below split and went into their different directions, Rails eyes stay focus on the one that had affected his plans twice. The man wouldn't live long enough to do it again.
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The soft thud of knives hitting a wooden target echo through the air. As the last knife hit dead center, Nathan jump when someone started to speak. "You know Mr. Jackson, Josiah might not understand why you needed to destroy one of his boards he was using to repair his church."
Turning to glare at the Gambler, Nathan shook his head and turned to his knife studded wood. "Just practicing, figure with Chris's plan I should make sure that my skills are still sharp."
"It is just odd finding you out here, when usually before of our plans you are figuring if you have enough bandages for all of us."
Moving over to his target, Nathan started to pull his knifes out, after he pulled out the fourth one, he turn to Ezra, "At this point I have more bandages then I can shake a stick at. Figure, I would work off some energy. What are you doing out here, don't you have a poker game somewhere to be playing?"
"At last, there is no poker game, it seems someone spilled to the others players about my great skill and they declined to play. I will have to wait for them to lose some of their fear before I play again. In addition, since everyone else had disappear, I felt I should go for a walk. And here I am."
Snorting softly, Nathan pulled the rest of his knives out of the target. Checking them over for a second, he looked over at Ezra. "What did Chris want you to do or are you ducking JD?"
Feigning an innocence look, Ezra sigh. "Nothing of the sort, I was just going for a walk, and maybe, just possible avoiding JD and Vin, who seem to be doing something that I don't want to know with mud. I volunteered to see where you had wander off to."
Snickering softly, Nathan place his knives back in their holder. "I take it; they wanted you as their test dummy. Though, I've heard that mud is good for one's skin...""
Shuddering slightly, the Southern shook his head. "Not this mud. I do have a question, if you have had enough of killing that poor wood."
Shrugging his shoulder Nathan settl back against a tree. "Go ahead, I could take a break."
For a long minute Ezra didn't say anything as he tried to figure out how to say what he wanted to ask. Finally, with a soft sigh, he asked. "Would the wife have been healed by the water that the man was looking for?"
Frowning for a second, Nathan's eyes widen slightly when he realized what Ezra was asking. "No, the water wouldn't have saved her, nothing would of. She...it was amazing that she lasted as long as she did, but there is no mystical or magical waters that can cure what she had." Pausing for a second, Nathan then asked. "Can I ask why you wanted to know?"
For a long second, Ezra said nothing. Finally, with a shrug, he looked at the Healer. "I don't know. It just seemed rather large gamble to take to save someone."
Staring at Ezra for a long moment, Nathan had a feeling there was more than that to the whole question but knowing he wasn't going to get more from the Gambler, he nodded. "People will do anything to keep their love ones alive, even if it is a slim possibility that it will work. Sometimes, there isn't anything we can do."
Frowning, the Southern shook his head. "So we shouldn't try?"
Moving over to Ezra, Nathan grin. "Hell no, we should try, but hopefully we have friends that can save us from our own ideas and passions."
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Looking at the spot that Vin had found, Chris had to agree, it was the perfect place for what he had wanted, turning to look at the Tracker, he nodded at the man. "Looks good. "
"Told ya, you think this plan will work?"
Snorting softly, Chris move a little bit around the area taking it from all angles again, finally he stop and eyed Vin. "Yes, people like Rails think they know everything and no one is smarter then him. At this point, the only person he wants is Buck and rest of us don't even register."
Nodding, Vin lean back against one of the many boulders spread across the area. "Rails going be so focus on Buck, he won't see us."
"With luck, the only person who will get hurt is Rails, and then we can put this whole thing behind us."
Snorting, Vin wander over to the Man in Black. "You know you just curse this whole thing. Someone is going to get hurt."
Glaring at the Texan, Chris shook his head. "No, no one is going to get hurt. We have it planned; besides, Nate is here to make sure that we don't get hurt."
"True, though I think Nate is ready to take on Rails on his own, just to stop having some much work to do. You think Rails is going to wait? That man seems mighty close his rifle."
Grinning, Chris headed back to his horse to head home. "Oh, he'll wait, it has gone too far for him to not confront Buck one more time, and he isn't stupid to do it with the rest of us around. He'll wait for the chance and when he gets it, he won't stop to look around."
Following Chris, Vin pause to take one more look at the area. "So, as long as we keep someone with Buck, he'll be safe till tomorrow."
"Yes, and if Buck knows what is good, he'll come out of tomorrow without an injury."
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Eying Josiah and JD, Buck stifle the urge to start sprinting to the livery, get on his horse, and ride away from his babysitters. He was tired of them following him, and unless he felt like being tied up and thrown into Chris's cabin for the rest of the day, he couldn't try to escape.
He really couldn't do much of anything, beyond going to his room, saloon and jail. Anywhere else and Josiah would start telling some random story that he was sure had some relation to this whole situation or JD would give him puppy dog eyes and ask what he was doing.
Stopping in the alleyway, Buck pause and lean against the wall of the building and eyed Josiah. JD had run off to check on something at the telegraph office, and the Ladies' Man was enjoying only have one pair of eyes on him.
With a sigh, Buck looked over at Josiah. "You know, both of you don't need to watch me."
A soft snort and the ex-preacher shook his head. "Easier this way, besides Chris wants to make sure you don't take any chances or with our luck get taken by Rails. Chris doesn't want his plans wrecked."
Staring at the ex-preacher, Buck roll his eyes. "I'm sure that is what he is worried about, can't have his plains ruin by me being kidnapped or something.
Hearing a noise at the end of the alleyway, Josiah turn away from Buck as he tried to see what it could have been. "You know that isn't the case."
When there wasn't an answer to his comment, Josiah whipped his head around to see Buck focused on the other end of the alleyway and a man that seemed to have appeared on the down the street from the entrance of the alleyway walking away from them.
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The words that Josiah had spoken seemed to have wash over Buck as he spotted a man. For a long second he didn't recognize the person, then who he was seeing crash down on him.
The twenty feet that separate him from the man that had featured in his nightmares these last few days, Buck's hand inched towards his guns, one bullet and the nightmares and pain would be avenged.
Just as he took a step, he felt something catch his foot, tripping him. As he landed hard in the dirt, he rol over to his back, and glare at the man that had tripped him. "Why?"
Josiah reach out a hand and help Buck up, "It isn't the time, and you wouldn't get within ten feet of him before he could kill you. We'll get him on our terms."
Buck growl slightly. "He is right there; one bullet and it would be over with. This whole thing would be over with."
Shaking his head, Josiah spoke, "He might, or you might hit someone who we don't see walking near him, who gets in the way by accident or he turns see you and shoots you. This could be part of his plan, from what you have told us isn't this dumb."
Growling softly, the lanky gunman put his gun back in its holster, turning to stare at Josiah, "I could have ended it."
Clasping the younger man's shoulder, the Ex-preacher sigh. "There was too much of a risk, we will have our chance but it isn't going to be when we are reckless. We'll get him, and when we do, no one will get hurt."
Taking a long look at the retreating back of Rails, Buck turn away after a moment, and headed back the way they came. "I'm going to check on JD."
Following behind Buck, Josiah let out a breath, that was close and he hoped that was the closest they would have to deal with Rails before tomorrow.
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With the sun spreading its last brilliant color across the sky as it slid behind earth, Buck stare at the group of men who had been watching him all day. "You know I don't need a bed time."
Nathan snorted and shook his head, "You need to get some sleep, besides you still aren't fully heal."
Rolling his eyes, he lean against the door to his room, "But still, it isn't even dark out and I rather not just stare at four walls all night."
Chris shook his head. "You agree with to follow the plan, and this is part of the plan. We aren't going to try to run the plan in the middle of the night, because you don't want to sleep."
Glaring at his oldest friend, Buck shook his head, "You sure about this whole thing? I don't think Rails is going to fall for this whole plan."
Ezra smile slightly, "If everything you told us about Rails is right, then he'll fall for the plan. I would bet you on it and as you know Mr. Wilmington, I don't gamble."
Eying the Gambler, he finally smile. "All right, I'll do it, though I'm going to be staring at the walls for a while."
Josiah grin, "I'm sure if you give it a chance you'll sleep more than you think."
With a snort, Buck open the door to his room and enter into it. As the door clicked shut, Josiah settled to take the first shift of watching the door.
Turning to look Chris, JD frown, "You sure this will work?"
For a long moment, Chris didn't say anything, but stare at the close door. Shaking his head, he turn to JD. "Yes, it'll work. Now, we have some things to do before tomorrow, let's get them done."
With that, Josiah watch as everyone headed off to do their task; it was going to be a long night."
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In the darken room, time to have slow to a crawl. The urge to light a lamp and check his watch, was over powering, hoping that hours had pass but he knew that only a minute if that would have pass since the last time he looked.
Closing his eyes, he tried to ignore the questions and scenarios of what could happen tomorrow, that kept running through his mind. Each one getting worse and worse, as he thought of them. Finally, as he felt the last thought of what tomorrow could bring flash through his head, he could feel himself start to fall asleep, when the memories of the last time he had dealt with Rails started to play through his mind.
Wrenching his eyes open, Buck sat up in bed and curse, this wasn't getting him the sleep he needed. Standing up he started to pace, he needed to sleep, he wouldn't admit to the others but he was tired, exhausted almost, but he knew he wouldn't get a sound night sleep until Rails was dead.
With a frustrated huff of air, Buck settle down on the bed, this time forcing his mind away from the what if's and memories, he wasn't going to worry about what tomorrow would bring, he couldn't stop it now. With that last thought, he started to drift asleep.
Just as he could feel himself drop into the black abyss of sleep, a loud clap of thunder, that seemed to shake the building, had Buck jerking up and staring wide eyed around the room and then cursing. At this rate, he wasn't going to get any sleep tonight. With a tired sigh, he flop onto his stomach and closed his eyes hoping that a change of position would allow him to fall asleep.
At the next loud crackle of lighting, followed by the booming sound of thunder did little to help Buck fall back asleep. Rolling on his back, Buck stared up at the ceiling, as the off-season rainstorm finally decided to let go of the rain it had been holding.
Resisting the urge to spring up from his bed and find Chris to see if the plan for finally catching Rails and ending this nightmare would be delayed due to the storm. The Ladies' Man close his eyes for a long moment and tried to will himself to fall asleep and not worry about a delay by Mother Nature or anything else.
With those final thoughts, the sleep that had been alluding him for most of the night finally came calling and for once, it was the dreamless sleep that he had desperately needed.
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The rosy fingers of dawn just coming over the land, as a door crick opened an inch. When there was no bellow or hand appearing to stop the door from opening, the door open wide enough for Buck to slide out of the room and onto the boardwalk.
Looking both way and not seeing anyone, Buck made his way slowly to the livery. He was tired of being stuck in town, and he was going to head out for some fresh air, and if he was lucky, he would find Rails to finish this cat and mouse game.
When he reach the livery, look around the barn, he smile as he got to Beau's stall without anyone stopping him.
Smiling at this horse, he rubbed Beau's head and saddled him. Leading Beau from his stall to outside the livery, Buck got up on his horse and looked around one more time to make sure that no one was going to stop him.
With a grin, urged Beau to a gallop and headed out of town, he needed some fresh air and now was his chance to get it.
tbc