Silent Memories
by Violette
Part 4
When he next awoke, Ezra found himself alone in the jeep. He sat up and looked around apprehensively, relaxing when he saw Vin carrying their bags into a tidy log cabin. He reached for the seatbelt, sighing in frustration when he couldn't get it opened. He was still working at it when Vin returned.
"Let me get that." Vin reached across and opened the buckle with ease.
Ezra scanned the area, not seeing any other buildings nearby. They were surrounded by dense forest that was interrupted only by the dirt road they had used to get to the cabin. "You don't consider this to be wilderness?" he asked, uncomfortable with the thought of 'roughing it' in his present condition.
Vin smiled and shook his head. "Just wait."
Ezra eyed him suspiciously, but followed him silently into the cabin. Stepping through the door, he stopped short, his eyes widening in surprise. The inside of the cabin was beautiful. The walls were covered in oak paneling and Indian rugs woven in vibrant colors were scattered across the polished oak floors. Two maroon overstuffed sofas graced the center of the large living room, and a television stood on a compact cabinet in the corner. A huge stone fireplace flanked by tall bookshelves took up the left side of the room, and large windows provided plenty of natural lighting. On the right hand side of the cabin was a spacious kitchen with elegant, but simple oak cabinets and modern appliances. A small, tiled table with four chairs stood at one end of the kitchen, next to a set of French doors leading to the deck. Between the kitchen and living room was a hallway that led to what Ezra assumed were bedrooms.
"What do you think?" Vin asked.
Ezra looked at his friend, noting the touch of apprehension in his eyes, as though he were afraid the cabin would be too rustic for his tastes. "It's wonderful, Mr. Tanner." He looked at Vin with a smile, making sure the other man could see the truth in his eyes. "Is it yours?"
Vin blushed slightly and nodded. "Yeah. Bought it off an old bounty hunting pal a few years ago. He used to use it as a hunting cabin, but was heading back east after he retired. It was kind of a dump, so he didn't ask much for it." He shrugged self-effacingly. "I've been fixing it up some."
"It's beautiful. I'm honored that you've allowed me to see it," Ezra stated sincerely.
Vin relaxed visibly and returned the smile. "You ain't even seen the best part, yet. Come on." He led Ezra down the hallway, stopping at the first door on the left. It was a large, comfortable bedroom, dominated by a huge, antique four-poster bed. The curtains, rugs, and comforter were done in hunter green and navy blue, accenting the warm oak walls and floors. An antique dresser and nightstand, unmatched, yet coordinating with the bed and furnishings, completed the room.
"Now that looks like a comfortable place to sleep," Ezra said approvingly.
Vin snorted. "I figured you'd appreciate it."
They left the room and moved to the next room on the left, which proved to be another sizeable bedroom, with similar antique furnishings, including another four-poster bed. This room was decorated in shades of blue and yellow, with homey braided rugs scattered on the floor.
"Mr. Tanner, I'm impressed," Ezra stated. "Did you do your own decorating?"
Vin nodded, looking embarrassed.
"You have very good taste," Ezra said, "and quite an eye for color."
"I thought you considered us all to be 'uncouth barbarians?'" Vin asked with a grin.
"That was before I saw this place," Ezra countered. "You've been hiding your light under a bushel, my friend."
Vin shrugged, both pleased and embarrassed by the compliments, then led the way to the room across the hall.
It was another bedroom, longer and wider than the other two, and done in varied shades of green. It was furnished with a trio of oak dressers and a matched set of three extra-long twin beds. Ezra looked closely at them, then asked, "Did you build those?"
"Yep," Vin answered. "Did the kitchen cabinets, too."
"You are quite the carpenter," Ezra said, a touch of awe in his voice. He grinned broadly at Vin. "Now I know who to call when my furniture needs repairs."
Vin rolled his eyes and tugged on Ezra's arm. "Come on. One room left."
The last room was a spacious and well-appointed bathroom. A wide shower stall with gray granite walls and a bench on one end took up most of the left side of the room. On the far end of the room, under the window, was a huge bathtub, complete with spa jets. A double sink and toilet filled the rest of the space on the right side. The fixtures were new, but in an antique style that complimented the decor of the rest of the house.
Ezra shook his head in wonder. "A jacuzzi tub, Mr. Tanner? I didn't think you went in for such luxuries."
Vin shrugged. "I remembered how nice it was when I used the one at your place after I got banged up on the DeNucci case, and I figured that kind of thing happens often enough to make it worth having one for myself."
"Too true," Ezra said with a laugh. "That was a major reason for my own purchase." He took another look at the bathroom, then frowned. "How do you provide power to run it out here?"
Vin grinned. "Well, there's a generator out back, but it's only for backup. I got a direct power line to this place."
"Out here?" Ezra asked curiously. "How, may I ask?"
"Bill – that's my old friend – he was a fanatic about sports, especially football and hockey, and he hated to miss the games on TV when he came out here." Vin chuckled and shook his head. "He had a friend who worked for the electric company and he managed to get them to hook him into one of the lines that runs not too far from here."
"That certainly makes things easier."
"Yep," Vin agreed. "I come out here a lot after some of the tougher cases, so it's kind of nice not to have to rough it too much."
The two men returned to the living room, where Vin started a fire in the fireplace. Ezra wandered into the kitchen and, with some difficulty, started a pot of coffee before returning to the living room. He sank into the sofa across from Vin and let out a sigh.
"Won't the others know to search for us here?" Ezra asked.
Vin shook his head. "Nobody else knows about this place."
"Oh," Ezra said, stunned by the declaration. He had assumed that he was the last to know of the cozy retreat. "Why did you decide to share it with me?"
Vin didn't answer at first, and Ezra began to regret asking the question. Finally, Vin said, "I figured you would understand about having a place for yourself, where you can be alone without worrying about anyone finding you."
Ezra stared at him thoughtfully, then nodded. "You're right. I do understand." He grinned suddenly. "In fact, I have my own quiet retreat from the world, much like this. I would have gone there had you not invited me along."
Vin laughed. "Should've expected that." He stood and went into the kitchen, returning with a cup of coffee for each of them. They sat quietly, enjoying their coffee and the warmth of the fire.
"Why have you furnished the other bedrooms?" Ezra asked quietly.
Vin looked at him, startled by the question. After a moment, he answered, "I guess I figured I might have all the guys up here some day." He shrugged. "Ain't used to having anybody I'd even want to share this place with. Always been just me."
Ezra nodded. "I know the feeling. I, too, have been contemplating adding additional sleeping quarters to my own hideaway."
Vin chuckled. "We're a real pair, ain't we?"
"Indeed," Ezra said with a grin. He took a sip of his coffee, then said tentatively, "Perhaps you could... assist me with my renovations after I have regained the use of my hands?"
"On one condition," Vin said. "You tell me what's up with...." He gestured to his ears.
Ezra grimaced. "I was hoping you'd forgotten."
"Not a chance," Vin said, a satisfied expression on his face.
"You drive a hard bargain, Mr. Tanner," Ezra said reluctantly. He turned to look at the fire, watching the flames dance and spark. A jolt of pain suddenly raced through his head and he winced, turning away. He felt a touch on his arm and glanced up at Vin, who had moved to crouch in front of him.
"You okay?"
"I'm fine," Ezra replied. "Just a bit of a headache."
"I'll get some aspirin." Before Ezra could protest, Vin had disappeared down the hallway toward the bathroom. He returned quickly and handed Ezra the pills and a glass of water, the look in his eyes telling Ezra it was futile to argue.
Ezra swallowed the pills, then leaned back into the soft couch cushions while Vin sat across from him expectantly. "It was a long time ago. I was eight years old and staying with some relatives. They were cousins of some sort, but I still called them Aunt and Uncle. I returned home one afternoon to find that my two young cousins and my aunt had been taken hostage in the house."
Ezra paused to take a sip of his coffee. "My uncle was a police officer and some miscreants whose brother he had arrested apparently decided to exact their revenge upon his family. I managed to call the police, but they discovered me and threw me in the kitchen with the others. I acquired my first dislocated shoulder that day." He swallowed as the images played through his head like a bad movie. "The two men were somewhat deranged and didn't react well to the presence of the police. The end result was that they shot my eleven-year-old cousin Jeremy in the head. I witnessed the whole thing."
"Jesus," Vin commented. A sight like that was hard enough for an adult to deal with, let alone an eight-year-old child.
"It was horrendous. My aunt started screaming and didn't stop," Ezra continued. "The doctors say I passed out from the shock of everything." He shrugged. "I awoke in the hospital, completely deaf."
Vin's eyebrows rose in question.
"It baffled the medical personnel for some time," Ezra said. "They eventually decided that it was all in my head. Psychosomatic deafness."
"How long did it last?"
"Eighteen months," Ezra answered succinctly.
Vin sat up and stared at him incredulously. "Eighteen months? Are you kidding?"
Ezra shook his head.
"Damn," Vin marveled. "Did you learn sign language?"
"Yes," Ezra replied, clumsily 'saying' a few words with his stiff hands. It was his turn to be surprised when Vin replied in kind.
"There's a couple of deaf kids that go to the Children's Center," Vin explained. "Figured it would be helpful to learn to talk to them."
"Admirable objective, Mr. Tanner," Ezra said with a smile.
"Did Maude learn to sign, too?"
Ezra snorted. "'Mother Dear' shipped me off to a special school the moment I was released from the hospital. She does not deal well with infirmity."
Vin clenched his teeth, furious with the woman. What kind of mother could abandon her child when he needed her the most? His own mother was gone, but at least he knew he was loved during his brief time with her. He shook his head to banish the thoughts, then asked, "You think that's what happened this time?"
Ezra shrugged. "Dr. Landry didn't see anything alarming when she examined me, so I suppose that it's possible."
"Any idea what might have caused it?"
"I don't know," Ezra replied. "I don't remember anything but a sudden blast of light and sound." He looked over at his friend. "Last time, I remembered nothing of Jeremy's death while I was deaf. The doctors said that I was blocking it from my mind. They suspected that I didn't want to hear my aunt's screaming, so I unconsciously removed my sense of hearing."
"Everything came back later, though?"
"Yes," Ezra replied. "My memory and hearing returned suddenly one night, after I awoke from a nightmare."
"Damn, Ez," Vin said, shaking his head in wonder. He hadn't expected anything like this.
"Got more than you bargained for, Mr. Tanner?" Ezra said, an amused smile playing on his lips.
"A little," Vin admitted. "Didn't think you ever had anything bad like that in your life. Always figured you had a great time growing up, what with having your Ma around and going to all them fancy schools."
"Those 'fancy schools' were simply another place for my mother to dump me when she no longer had any use for me," Ezra admitted, a trace of bitterness in his voice. He had grown used to people making such assumptions about his childhood. Meeting Maude usually only reinforced other's belief that he grew up in the lap of luxury with a loving parent at his side.
"So, you were just gonna wait and hope that your hearing came back?" Vin inquired, sensing a need to change the direction of their discussion.
"Something like that," Ezra replied.
"And just how long do you think you would've been able to hide it?"
Ezra shrugged sheepishly. "It seemed like a good idea at the time."
"What about now?"
Ezra looked away for a moment, staring out the window. "I don't know."
"Maybe you should talk to the doctor," Vin suggested when Ezra was once again looking in his direction. "You have to see her next week anyway."
"Perhaps," Ezra said noncommittally.
"The guys are gonna catch on before too long, you know," Vin added. "They're pretty sharp."
"I know," Ezra said resignedly. "I suppose I'll have to tell them."
"Don't worry, I'll try to keep them from going all 'big brother' on you," Vin said, grinning broadly.
Ezra groaned. "If you are unsuccessful, I may have to escape to my own hidden retreat for a while."
"Just promise me you'll let me know where you are, if you do go anywhere," Vin said seriously. "I don't want to be worrying about you."
Flushing at the concern he was being shown, Ezra nodded mutely.
"When you planning on telling them?"
"My doctor's appointment isn't until Wednesday," Ezra said. "I would rather wait until after I speak with her."
"Sounds good to me," Vin said. "You want to hang out here until then? They ain't letting me back in the office for another week anyway." He rolled his eyes at that. "Just 'cause of a damn concussion."
"It was a bad one, from what I was told. And wasn't there something about bruised ribs?"
Vin shrugged. He figured that as long as he felt fine, he should be able to return to work.
"Well, I won't be seeing the office for at least two weeks," Ezra sighed.
"At least you can sleep late," Vin said, slapping his shoulder as he stood. "You hungry?"
Ezra nodded. "I could eat."
"I packed a few things at home," Vin said before making his way to the kitchen.
Ezra followed, curious about what kind of lunch Vin would have brought. He smiled when his friend took out a loaf of bread and a small cooler containing some sandwich fixings. The bags of potato chips and chocolate cupcakes that followed were not much of a surprise, considering Tanner's well-known penchant for junk food.
"There's a little town about fifteen miles from here," Vin said. "We can go make a food run after lunch."
Ezra nodded and took the plate Vin handed him and sat down at the small table. "Do you think they've become exasperated with us yet?"
Vin laughed. "Oh yeah. That's why I made sure our cell phones were turned off."
"Mr. Larabee is likely cursing our existence at the moment," Ezra said in an amused voice.
"I'll give him a call later and let him know we're okay," Vin said. "Otherwise, he might call out the troops to hunt our asses down."
Ezra shuddered dramatically at the image of Larabee swooping down on them, glare on full blast. "God forbid."
"Goddammit!" Chris slammed the phone down and stalked out of his office.
"What's wrong?" JD asked.
"Ez and Vin took off," Chris said in a clipped, angry tone. "Stole Buck's truck and lit out a an hour or so ago."
JD ducked his head and stifled a snicker.
"Buck didn't notice them drivin' off in his truck?" Nathan asked doubtfully.
"Says he fell asleep watching television," Chris explained.
Josiah smiled indulgently and shook his head. "Our young brothers don't care much for confinement."
"Damn fools," Nathan muttered with a sigh. "Don't have the sense God gave dirt."
"They're not answering any of their phones," Chris said, running his hand through his hair in frustration.
"They'll call eventually," JD said with certainty. "They always do after they take off like that."
"I want one of you to go by Ezra's, see if they show up there in the next few hours," Chris said. "I'm going to head over to Vin's."
"Maybe we should just leave them be for now, Chris," Josiah suggested.
"Normally, I'd agree with you," Chris said with a sigh, "but someone purposely bombed that warehouse, and we can't be sure that we – or Ez and Vin in particular – weren't the targets."
"Hadn't thought of that," Nathan said, a worried frown creasing his face.
"We'd better get after them, then," Josiah said.
The four men set off on their appointed tasks.
The town was small and quaint, seemingly untouched by the rampant commercial development that had overtaken similar communities near the mountains. Here, there were no large ski resorts or nightclubs, and only a few small hotels and bed and breakfast accommodations to cater to tourists. The majority of businesses in the town were devoted to the hunters, fisherman, and hikers who came to the area to escape the urban grind.
Vin was apparently well-known and liked by the residents and Ezra found the same warmth and friendship extended to himself, as a friend of Vin's. His bandages drew questions and sympathy from the older woman who ran the grocery store with her husband, and Ezra, much to his chagrin, found himself the focus of some motherly fussing.
"You take this soup along with you," the woman said to Vin, tucking two large jars into their grocery bags. "It's good for what ails you."
"Thank you, Mrs. Weaver," Vin said.
"And you, young man," she said, wagging her finger at Ezra. "You make sure you rest and take your medicine. I raised five sons, so I know how stubborn you boys can be."
"Yes ma'am," Ezra said humbly, his face reddening in embarrassment while Vin chuckled.
They took their packages to the jeep, where Vin let his chuckle grow to a full out laugh.
"Shut up, Mr. Tanner," Ezra said, glaring at him. He didn't need to hear the laughter to know the other man was enjoying his discomfort.
"Hell no," Vin said, grinning at his friend. "She usually fusses over me when I come out here. It's nice to see her doing it to someone else for a change."
Ezra rolled his eyes and climbed into the jeep for the ride back to the cabin. They had spent a couple of hours walking around the town, browsing the small stores. There were several antique stores that both he and Vin had found interesting. Most of the contents were more aptly classified as 'junk', but there were a few quality pieces to be found and both men enjoyed poking around the quaint shops.
The sharpshooter had been surprised that Ezra enjoyed wandering through the cluttered stores. He didn't think the sophisticated undercover agent would waste his time in such places, preferring the more upscale and modern shopping areas found in the city. Ezra, however, had explained to him how he had always enjoyed looking at antiques; it was an interest he had developed during his occasional stays with a kindly aunt, who would spend entire weekends seeking out treasures at antique stores and fairs.
It had been an enjoyable day, but Ezra still found himself easily fatigued and was contemplating a nap before dinner. He had also used his hands more than he should that day and was starting to hurt. Vin somehow seemed to sense this and handed Ezra one of his pills before starting the jeep.
Ezra raised an eyebrow at him, holding up the pill curiously.
"Your eyes are getting all squinty," Vin said – at least, that's what Ezra thought he said.
"Squinty?" Ezra queried tentatively.
"Yep," Vin said. "They always do that when you're hurting."
"Oh," Ezra said. "I suppose I shall have to work on that." He popped the pill into his mouth.
Vin sighed, shaking his head. "Don't have to hide anything from me, Ez."
"Well, I do have a reputation to maintain," Ezra sniffed. "What kind of undercover agent would I be if I allow myself to be found out so easily?"
Vin groaned, but didn't answer, knowing that he would not come out ahead in any argument with the stubborn southerner.
Ezra, for his part, leaned back in his seat with a smile.
"Larabee," Chris answered his cell phone sharply, frustrated by the lack of success they had had in finding his missing men.
"Hey, cowboy," Vin's lazy drawl sounded over the phone.
"Where the hell are you?" Chris demanded.
"Someplace quiet."
"Tanner, you get your ass back here now!" Chris barked.
"Sorry, pard," Vin said. "Me an' Ez are doin' just fine. We don't need no more babysittin'."
"There could be a bomber out there with your name on his list," Chris said, trying to reason with the obstinate Texan. "You want to risk yours and Ezra's necks? You'll be safer here, with us to back you up."
"Ain't nobody gonna find us where we're at, Chris," Vin stated firmly. "Nobody knows about this place and I made sure we weren't followed."
"Dammit, Vin!" Chris shouted, his frustration reaching the boiling point. "This isn't a game."
"We can take care of ourselves," Vin replied angrily. "We ain't amateurs and we've been watchin' out for ourselves for a long time. Don't need nobody hoverin' over us every damn minute like we're a couple of kids or somethin'."
"Vin..."
"We'll be fine," Vin said shortly, then in a softer voice, "Just need some space right now, cowboy. We'll be back on Wednesday."
"Vin?" Chris said. But the sharpshooter had hung up. "Dammit!" Chris immediately dialed Josiah and filled him in on the conversation. Between the two of them, they alerted the rest of the team and met up back at the office.
"What do you want to do?" Josiah asked, watching as Chris paced back and forth across the office.
"There isn't much we can do," Chris said after a long silence. "We aren't going to find them unless they want to be found."
"Yeah, they're a couple of sneaky bastards," Buck commented.
Nathan snorted. "No kidding."
"That's what makes them so good at their jobs," JD said, secretly admiring his two friends for their escape.
"I wish I knew where they were, at least," Chris said. "We can't do anything to help them from here if something goes down."
JD opened his mouth to say something, but then closed it quickly, changing his mind about what he was going to say.
"JD?" Josiah said, tilting his head in question at the younger agent.
"I was just gonna say that they'll call us if they get worried about anything." JD shrugged. "They ain't stupid." He had actually intended to say that he could do some computer searches and possibly find where they had gone, but decided that his friends deserved to spend time by themselves, if that was what they wanted. He certainly didn't want to be the one who sent the mother hen patrol to descend upon them.
TBC