"Silas, would you please run up and get Heath's room ready?" Jarrod glances over to Silas who has been silently watching the scene unfold amongst the brothers.

"Sure thing, Mr. Jarrod."

A large smile spreads across his face, as he gently pats Heath on the cheek before rising to leave. The scene he had just witnessed fills him with a sense of ease. He has been so worried about that boy but now, with his brothers accepting him and knowing that the Barkleys were good men, he felt the tension in his heart release. That boy is going to be just fine, he thought as he climbed the back stairs and headed toward Heath's room.

Carefully sliding his arm behind his injured brother, Nick gently begins to help Heath rise to his feet. The stifled moan, the closed eyes, and the tense muscles are not missed by the three men as they watch Heath work to get his feet underneath him. Quickly snaking around on the other side, Gene gently adds his support hoping to lessen the strain on his injured sibling. Turning slightly on the landing so they are facing the back stairs, the three linked shoulder to shoulder pause for a moment to let Heath catch his breath.

Head bowed Heath waits out the wave of dizziness that threatens to send him back down onto the ground as he takes slow deliberate breaths in an attempt to regulate his painful breathing. Knowing he is leaning more on the two men beside him than he would like, he shifts his weight back onto his left side in an attempt to take some of the pressure off of his throbbing wound. The movement sends a furious flare of scorching pain rippling through his broken ribs eradicating his fragile reserve and causing his knees to buckle.

Caught off guard by the sudden descent of their burden, Nick and Gene quickly solidify their foundation swiftly catching the falling man. Without thought, Nick reaches down and gently lifts Heath into his arms and before the boy can so much as complain he starts up the stairs followed by Jarrod and Gene, toward the small room adjacent to his own.

The death glare burning rabidly in the light blues eyes as Nick gently sets Heath down on his bed sends waves of stunted laughter through Jarrod and Gene who immediately head over to sit on either side of their youngest brother. Gene shifts slightly behind the young man and gently places a hand on Heath's back helping to support him as Nick, seemingly oblivious to the anger being spewed at him, bends down to carefully remove Heath's boots before looking up and meeting the icy blues staring back at him.

"WHAT?" Nick yells, noticing the barely contained laughter waiting to burst forth from Jarrod and Gene.

"I ain't-a baby, Nick!" Heath yells back, shocking Jarrod and Gene who have never heard him yell before, "I could've walked," he falters taking in a painful breath, "just needed a minute is all!"

"Wha… I… you…" Nick takes a step back and turns away from them raising a fist in the air in frustration. Using the same hand to swipe his fingers through his hair he takes in a deep breath, places his hands on his hips, and then turns back around to face them.

Seeing the confusion playing out on Nick's face, Jarrod rises from the bed and walks over to give Nick's shoulder a gentle squeeze before pulling up a chair and setting it in front of Heath. Reaching over, he places a hand on Heath's knee and watches as suspicious eyes follow each of his movements. Jarrod leans in and takes a good look at the young man before him. Behind the new bruises that are so vivid on Heath's pale skin, he notices the prominent dark circles under his eyes, the hollow cheeks, the gaunt frame, and the fact that Heath is leaning more and more on Gene.

"Heath," Jarrod pauses waiting for Heath to acknowledge him. "Nick was only trying to help you. You're obviously hurting."

He pauses again, blue eyes connecting with shame-filled azure eyes causing Jarrod's breath to catch. Of course. In the almost two months that Heath has been living with them, it dawns on Jarrod that he has only ever asked for one thing and that was only when prompted. Even injured, unable to get out of bed, he has never asked for help and usually at least attempts to do things on his own. He's not used to having anyone to lean on.

"It's what brothers do. We help each other, protect each other, and even occasionally find time to go off and have some fun."

"Yeah Heath, you'll see. When this is all over, we can go up to the lodge and do some hunting and fishing." Gene smiles at him, reaches up, and messes up his hair. He notices Heath's eyes are glued to Nick who is standing thoughtfully behind Jarrod meeting Heath's gaze.

"Look, Heath, it's what I would have done for Gene or Jarrod. Well, if Jarrod still worked on the range and lost a few pounds." He lightly punches Jarrod in the arm and in turn, Jarrod looks playfully offended. The small lopsided grin on the pained face sets them all at ease.

"Sorry, Jim and Frank are always telling me not to be so stubborn."

"Well, I'd say you come by it naturally. It is definitely a Barkley trait and I can only imagine how stubborn your mother must have been to be strong enough to raise you on her own."

Jarrod meets his eyes which instantly fill with tears at the unsolicited compliment to his mother. Giving Heath's knee a slight squeeze, he allows the boy to collect himself before he continues.

"You know Heath if you ever want to talk about your mother or your aunt Rachel, you've got three brothers and a little sister who would be happy to listen. You don't have to grieve alone."

Heath nods, though he is not sure he will ever feel comfortable enough to share his past with these men. The offer overwhelms him all the same and the brothers watch as a few tears escape their captor.

"Now," Jarrod leans in toward Heath and quickly changes the subject, "let's take a look at what they did to you and get this bloody shirt off you." He starts to unbutton Heath's shirt.

"Why?" Heath utters breathlessly.

"Why?" Jarrod gives the blonde a confused look only to see a look of desperation looking back at him. "I thought you would be more comfortable cleaned up before Howard gets here."

"No... I mean why… why now?" Heath closes his eyes as he takes in another slow breath, "I've been here for… for almost two months... and… and it wasn't until about a week ago that… that ya'll even talked to me," he stops and lays his head on Gene's shoulder, eyes closed. The three brothers exchange worried looks before Heath continues, "Why… why do you want to be brothers... now?"

Jarrod's hands stop working their way down the buttons on Heath's shirt as he leans back in his chair and instead places them on his knees. The desperate look he has seen in Heath's eyes, tells them all how much he needs them to answer this question. It tells them all how much he wants to believe they really want to be his brother. He looks up at Nick and Gene before he tries to answer their new brother.

"Well, Brother Heath, if you can believe it, about a week ago," he pauses, Had it really only been five or six days since Heath was shot? "our rather loud brother here pointed out to us do-gooders that while we had accepted you into our home we had not made any effort to make you feel welcome. After that, we all agreed we needed to spend more time with you, especially since there is no doubt in any of our minds that you are Father's son, our brother."

Heath glances around at all of them and then settles on Nick, who shifts uncomfortably under his gaze.

"It's true, Heath," Gene chimes in, "Not only do you look like him, you walk like him and laugh like him."

"Sorry," Heath mutters. He glances back up at Nick, who breaks his gaze and instead looks down at his own boots.

"Don't be. It's kind of nice. Like small reminders of happy memories we may have forgotten."

They all watch as Heath's eyes close and he leans further into Gene as he begins to lose the battle with his own exhaustion. Quietly, Jarrod again starts unbuttoning the ruined shirt and then carefully slides the shirt off as Nick quickly walks around the bed to prop up some additional pillows for Gene to lean Heath up against. As he makes his way back from around the bed, Nick's eyes involuntarily shift to the mutilated skin where only smooth young tan muscles should be and that protective rage he felt for Gene fills him with a desire to tear this boy's uncle apart with his bare hands.

As they lay him down against the stack of pillows, the three brothers stare not only at the dark purple and black hues that adorn the boy's chest but also at the toll the last week has had on him. Through his slender frame, the sight of his ribs clearly defined under a thin layer of skin show the extent of weight loss in just the last few days and cause each brother to vow to make sure the boy eats more.

Lifting the bandage off the partially healed bullet wound, Jarrod notices that while it does look a little inflamed it is not bleeding again and so he decides it is best to leave that for the doctor. So instead, he reaches over and grabs a cool cloth Silas had left and gently lays it on Heath's swollen eye hoping to help ease the swelling while Nick and Gene carefully change the now sleeping young man back into sleeping pants.

With their ministrations done, the three men pull up seats around the bed, watching the rhythmic motion in the rise and fall of their youngest brother's chest. Yes, they will all wait here watching over their baby brother, protecting him as he sleeps, until the doctor comes.