Dawn had just broken when a crash from the front room startled Mark awake. Angry voices were quickly followed by the sound of men fighting, urging him to ignore the ache of his shoulder as he jumped out of bed. The boy hurried across the room and opened the door just in time to see one of the men bringing the handle of his gun down on Lucas's head. The rancher fell to his knees, one final blow across his jaw sending him to the ground.

"PA!" Mark ran forward, Ryker grabbing his arm and pulling him back. "Let me go!"

Morrison kicked Lucas in the ribs before turning his attention to Morley, hauling the half-conscious man to his feet.

"He's had enough, Morrison," Ryker intervened. "We don't need him turning up at the trial all black and blue. You won't give us any more trouble, will you, Sam?"

Morley glared at the man, spitting blood from his mouth. "…No."

"Good."

Again, Mark started forward, Ryker's grip preventing him from going anywhere. "Boy, you take a good, long look at what's just happened here. My patience is growing thin. I won't hesitate to shoot the next person who causes any trouble, trial or not. Morrison, find some rope for McCain. Morley, you get back to those papers before I decide to tie you up, too."

Ryker released his grip on the boy, allowing him to tend to Lucas. Mark dropped to his knees beside his father, trying to get him to come around before getting a rag and bowl of water.

When Morrison returned, he grabbed Mark's bad arm, pulling the boy to his feet and pushing him away. Mark held his tongue, watching with angry eyes as the man tied his father up.

"Morrison, go relieve Ward."

As the man followed Ryker's orders, Sam looked up to see Mark returning to Lucas's side and noticed the concern on the boy's face. "…He alright?"

"I don't know." Mark kept his eyes on Lucas as he tried to wipe the blood from his forehead. "…This cut from the gun is deep."

"He'll come around in a few minutes," Ryker assured. "All you need to worry about is getting that jury to believe you. Get back to studying."

As Mark continued to clean his pa's face, he became more concerned the longer Lucas went without waking up. Nearly half an hour passed before he felt himself breathe a sigh of relief, watching as Lucas started to come around.

"Pa? …Pa?"

Lucas struggled to sit up, realizing his wrists were bound as he felt a supporting hand grab his arm. He let out a deep breath as he leaned back against the cabin wall, his brow furrowing at the pain he felt in his head.

"Pa?"

Lucas slowly opened his eyes, working to bring Mark's worried face into focus. "…I'm alright, Son."

"Are you sure?"

Lucas nodded, but couldn't keep from grimacing. "I'm alright."

Mark stood and got a glass of water before returning to his father's side. He held the glass to Lucas's lips, only tilting it enough so a small, steady stream of liquid came out.

"…Thank you."

"How does your head feel?"

"I'll be fine." The rancher tried to give a reassuring smile as he answered, but his eyes betrayed the pain he felt.

"McCain, I'll tell you what these two already know." Ryker stepped forward, his large frame hovering over father and son. "The next person who gets any bright ideas will get a bullet in their chest. I'm not in the mood for games- don't make me regret keeping you alive."

As the morning wore on, Lucas noticed conflict in his son's eyes. He was worried that Mark was trying to plan something and gave him a number of warning looks. After lunch, Ryker stepped outside, leaving Benson in the cabin to keep watch. The man sat down at the table with a newspaper, paying little mind to his wards.

"…Mark, I don't want you to do anything. There are too many men out there," Lucas quietly spoke.

"I know."

The rancher was surprised by the shortness in his son's voice and looked at him in confusion. "…What's the matter?"

"Nothing."

"We both know that isn't true. Out with it."

Mark shook his head, frustration in his voice as he quietly answered. "What's the matter is that I could have slipped out the window last night, but you said I couldn't. I could have gone for help, but instead, you made me stay here! What happened to, "now isn't the time to fight?""

"Circumstances change, Son. I saw something worth trying; something that had less of a chance of you getting caught in the middle."

"I'm already caught in the middle."

"You know what I meant," Lucas answered with a hint of irritation in his voice. "How fast do you think you could have run last night with your arm like it is? How well do you think you could have kept your balance? How far do you think you would have gotten with Ryker's men crawling all over the place?"

"Farther than you got this morning."

Caught off guard by his son's tone, the rancher hesitated to answer. "…Mark, what's gotten into you?"

"Nothing's gotten into me," he snapped. "I'm not six years old anymore; I can do more than sit around and complicate things! If you had let me go last night, this whole thing could be over. But instead of letting me help, you nearly got yourself killed!"

Finally seeing the fear and guilt break through his boy's angry eyes, Lucas let out a heavy sigh. "Son…"

"Benson, Morley, in the bedroom, now!" Ryker crossed the cabin floor and pushed Mark out of the way before bending down to untie Lucas. "Your marshal and someone else from town are headed this way. I don't care what it takes, you get rid of them!" The man stood and grabbed Mark's arm as he started towards the other room. "I told my men to stay out of sight, but if I even think you're trying to tip them off, you'll have a number of graves to dig, starting with your son's!"

Mark looked to Lucas. His father's expression hadn't changed, but he could see a protective anger buried deep inside Lucas's eyes as he nodded.

A few moments after the others had disappeared into the bedroom, Lucas heard his son yelp in pain. He started towards the door, only for Ryker to crack it open and reveal his gun.

"Get out there and get them gone."

The rancher's voice was cold and steady as he answered the man. "You touch that boy again, I'll make you regret the day you were born."

As Lucas stepped outside, he saw a buggy crossing the bridge. He put on his hat to cover his injury and stepped to the edge of the porch, a look of regret crossing his face as Milly and Micah drove into the yard.

"Milly, I'm sorry," he apologized, stepping to the buggy. "Mark wasn't feeling well when I got home yesterday and I decided to keep him home from church; I forgot we had accepted your invitation to lunch."

"Is he alright? Should we get Doc?"

"He probably just had too much candy while I was gone. I'm sure he'll be fine. I'd invite you in, but he had a long night and finally fell asleep in my chair not too long ago."

"You have any trouble with our witness, Lucas-boy? I was concerned when you didn't check in yesterday."

"No trouble. Turns out our witness is Sam Morley."

"Morley? The one you turned in a few years ago?"

Lucas nodded. "He's trading his testimony for an early release. Sorry to worry you; we were going to head into town after the storm cleared, but I got distracted with Mark."

"That's fine, I'm just glad you made it in alright."

"Milly, can we have you out to the ranch next Sunday? I'm sorry I forgot about dinner."

"I'd love to."

"Micah, you care to join us?"

"Sounds good, Lucas-boy. The judge wants Morley in town by seven tomorrow morning; I'll see you then."

"Tell Mark I hope he gets to feeling better."

"I will. See you two later."

Lucas watched as Micah turned the team around and drove away before returning inside. Ryker stepped through the bedroom door, followed by Benson and Morley.

"You did well, Mr. McCain." The man grabbed the piece of rope from the floor, then motioned to the bedroom door. "Move."

As he stepped inside, Lucas could see why his son had cried out in pain. Mark sat on the floor with his hands tied to the bedpost behind him, the shirt that had been used as a sling now hanging over a chair. "Ryker, his arm needs to be supported; it takes pressure off the shoulder."

"I'm not taking any more chances with you two, especially now with that marshal poking around. Sit."

The rancher complied and sat at the foot of the bunk opposite of his son. Ryker tied him to the bedpost before checking Mark's ropes, then returning to the front room. An uneasy silence settled in the room as Lucas watched his son avoid eye contact. He waited a few minutes, thinking through their earlier conversation before calling for the boy's attention.

"Mark? …Look at me, Son."

A few moments passed before Mark hesitantly turned his head, still struggling to look his father in the eye.

"This isn't your fault."

"…Maybe not exactly. But if you had been able to trust me last night, I could have-"

"Mark, this has nothing to do with trust. …Remember when we were out at Skull Ranch? I asked you to go then."

"…But that was before."

"Before what?"

"Before Mr. Reynolds and Faye. Before I made a mess of everything. Before I almost got you killed!"

"That part of it is over and done with, Mark. Even though we still have things to discuss, you asked for my forgiveness and I gave it to you. What happened with Reynolds and Faye had no bearing on last night. Last night, you were injured. Last night, Ryker had men posted behind the house and on the roads. Last night, you were so tired you could hardly keep your eyes open. This morning, there were men asleep in the barn. This morning, I had a chance to overpower Ryker. This morning, I didn't have to worry about someone getting trigger happy and shooting you. Yes, I still took a risk, but it was a calculated risk. And that's not your fault in any way."

"…Pa, do… do you hate me for-"

"No."

"I… I know you said you forgave me, but… did you-"

"No, Mark. It's no secret that I was angry at you for letting Reynolds go. With Faye… I was too confused to feel anything else. I don't understand why you helped Reynolds escape… I don't understand… I don't understand how you could have wanted to help Faye find a man he was going to kill. But I still love you."

"…I was still wrong, because I knew Faye's intentions were to hurt that vet… but Pa, I… I never thought he would try to kill him. …I should have known then that getting even, whether for Faye or for you was wrong… but Faye told me his side of the story, and… it never occurred to me that there might be another side. I didn't think it was fair that Faye's life had been destroyed by that man and he was still walking free, destroying your life… our life. All I could think about was when the herd got hoof and mouth last year. I was scared and angry, because… because I thought you might leave me again. After Mr. Reynolds… things hadn't been right between us… and if you left… I wasn't so sure you would come back this time. …I was more sure you wouldn't."

It hurt Lucas to hear his son's explanation. He knew their relationship had been strained, but he hadn't realized how much it had deteriorated. "…Mark, there is nothing you could ever do to make me stop loving you. I hated going to Wyoming… I hated being separated from you like that. Which is why I've worked so hard to break new ground this spring… I couldn't leave you like that again. …We've both acknowledged how difficult things have been… but I didn't realize you felt so removed from me. …Not too long before Faye came to town… when I was helping Jesse Phillips… I thought things were getting better between us."

"… I guess there were moments when things felt a little better, but… I always felt a distance between us. I'd try to ignore that awkwardness, but eventually that feeling would come back. And then we'd try to talk about it and I'd just make you more upset with me. …Maybe some of that was my own fault… feeling guilty and knowing that what I did was wrong, but still trying to justify my actions. I finally realized I couldn't… but that was right before I met Faye. …I knew nothing would fix the damage I had done to our relationship… but I thought… I thought by helping Faye, I could get some form of justice for both of you. …I've seen a lot of men get away with things because the law wouldn't step in, and I thought it was happening again. I thought Mr. Mack deserved to be in prison and that the law just didn't care about what had happened to Faye… so I decided Mr. Mack was deserving of some kind of punishment, even if the law wasn't going to do its job. …I know my thinking was wrong, but I thought maybe by helping Faye bring one man to "justice," I could make up for letting Mr. Reynolds go. …You raised me to use better reasoning than I did… I didn't realize how much I was letting my anger at Mr. Mack and myself cloud my judgment… and I'm sorry. I know there's nothing I can do to make it right, but I won't ever forget the consequences of what I did."

Lucas thought for a long time, realizing that there was much more behind his son's actions than he had expected there to be. "…I wish you would have learned those lessons through observation, not experience, but I'm glad you were willing to learn them. And you're right, you won't ever forget what your actions led to that day. …There's something else you need to understand, though."

"…What is it?"

"As you grow older, we're bound to have more disagreements and arguments. We will both make mistakes. But no matter how angry either one of us becomes, I could never hate you. And I'm sorry you had to ask if I did."

"…I think I knew the truth. But my own guilt over… over Faye almost…" Mark's voice broke as he thought about watching the man strangle his father. "…I think it makes me feel things that aren't there, because I know I could never deserve your forgiveness. …I think that's why I needed to ask… I could tell myself the same thing over and over again… but I needed to hear it from you."

Lucas nodded in understanding. "I love you, Son."

Monday morning came much too soon. Mark watched as Ryker untied Lucas, keeping a gun trained on the rancher as he stood.

"Let's go."

"What about my son?"

"He stays here to make sure you two behave. If I don't come back tonight, you won't see him ever again."

"He's expected to be in school."

"He's supposed to be sick, remember? We'll stop by the schoolhouse and let the teacher know the boy won't be in class this week."

Lucas looked to his son, hiding the fear he felt. "Do as they say; I'll be back tonight."

"…Yes, Pa."

Ryker rode behind Lucas and Sam, keeping a hand on his holstered gun. As they approached the outskirts of town, Ryker told them to stop and waited for the men to look back at him.

"I don't want to raise any suspicion riding in with you two, so this is where we have to start trusting each other. As Sam will attest, I'm a man of my word. You two keep quiet and do as you've been told, there won't be any trouble. But if either of you try raising the alarm, that boy won't live to see tomorrow. I have men posted around town to make sure the two of you behave, and any one of them can give the signal to have the boy killed, so I suggest you cooperate."

"There won't be any trouble," Lucas assured. "Just don't go making any more for yourself. If something happens to that boy-"

"I think we understand each other."

After a brief stop at the school, Sam and Lucas made their way to the town hall. Micah greeted them as they entered the courtroom, asking if there had been any trouble at the ranch.

"Just Sam telling Mark too many stories about my younger years," Lucas answered with a laugh. "The things we did…"

"Where is Mark? I'm surprised he's not here, petitioning Judge Evans to close the school for the week."

"He's still not feeling well; I thought it would be best for him to stay home another day or two."

Micah nodded in understanding. "Morley, if you want to head over that way, the judge has some instructions for you and the other witnesses." As the man walked away, the marshal turned back to Lucas, taking note of the cut on his forehead. "What happened there?"

"The cow was out of sorts last night, I didn't move out of the way fast enough. How have things been in town? Any trouble?"

"Oh, a little trouble at the saloon, nothing to complain about. I was expecting worse."

"Good." Seeing a deputy U.S. Marshal approaching Micah, the rancher took his leave. "I'll see you later."

A few minutes before the trial began, Lucas saw Ryker enter the room and sit down in the back. Taking his own seat, Lucas surveyed the room, noting several men he assumed were associates of Sullivan. As the morning passed, the rancher found it difficult to focus on the proceedings. His mind was riddled with concerns for his son, hoping and praying Ryker would stay true to his word.

It was well after two o'clock when Morley took the stand. Lucas looked to the ground as the prosecutor began asking questions, his head snapping up when he heard an unexpected answer.

"Yes," Sam replied. "It was Elbert Sullivan who shot and killed those girls."

Lucas started to stand, only to feel the barrel of a gun being pressed into his back.

"You stay put," a voice whispered. "Elsewise you and everyone else in this courtroom is gonna be shot dead."

"How do you know it was Elbert Sullivan?" the attorney inquired.

"Because I was there when it happened. That scar on Sullivan's neck is courtesy of my bullet- I was there to steal money, not kill innocent children. Sullivan crossed a line when he shot those girls."

Lucas turned to the man behind him as he whispered, "You tell Ryker I had nothing to do with this- my boy has nothing to do with this!"

"Given that you are admittedly a criminal yourself," the lawyer went on, "Just why should any of us believe that you're telling the truth?"

"…Because there's a man in this courtroom threatening to kill me, Lucas, and Mark McCain if I do."

Before another word could be spoken, the room erupted into gunfire and screams. Lucas turned to face the man behind him, a bullet tearing into his shoulder and forcing him to the ground. He struggled to sit up, hearing one last gunshot before everything turned black.