A Good Name – IV
Three weeks had passed and the town continued to stand in spite of its missing peacekeepers. The local ranchers and shopkeepers pitched in where they could, but all in all, the remaining two – the sheriff and the healer – carried the majority of the load. They were tired from the long duties, but still, on the appointed day, they woke early and waited excitedly.
"There," Nathan said, pointing at distant shapes as the afternoon lengthened.
JD jumped to his feet. It was everything he could do to not saddle up and ride out to meet them. No, they had decided to be here, in the town they protected, when the missing five returned.
The two paced. Crossed the street, strode up the boardwalk, climbed to an upper story for a better view, and then clamored down as the five riders came closer.
"Vin!" JD shouted finally. "Ezra!" He ran the last few lengths, unable to wait any longer, with Nathan jogging up behind them.
The five pulled to a stop, just short of the first building that marked the start of town. Chris was in the lead, with Vin beside him. Vin seemed to sit somewhat taller in his saddle as he grinned at the sheriff. Buck and Josiah rode behind, flanking Ezra, with the packhorses strung after them. They all looked thoroughly pleased to be home.
"Hey, kid!" Buck reached out one arm to make sure that Ezra stayed upright. "Good to see you kept the place in one piece."
"Damn right!" JD shouted back, smiling wide as his mouth would allow.
"Ya damn fool!" Nathan berated as soon as he was close enough to note the pale and exhausted gambler. "What do you think you're doin'? Didn't Dr. Templeton tell you to stay put? Do you listen to him as much as you listen to me? Do you want to kill yourself?"
Ezra threw Buck a long-suffering glance and said, "Lord, I thought I'd escaped this when I left Digby." He was thinner than JD remembered - they all were thinner - and Ezra's hair looked curiously short under his hat.
"He didn't want to stay put any longer," Buck replied. "Stayed about a week after he woke, but figured if we started out early, we could go it slow and let these fella's catch up to us along the way."
Nathan just shook his head as he helped Ezra down from the saddle. "Damn stubborn fool! You couldn't just wait for Vin and the others to get back to Digby, could you? You could have used that extra week and got enough rest… but no. Had to start out early."
Ezra sighed. "If we'd waited for them, we'd have been even later and we've been away too long as it is. I'm afraid that I've been a bit of an anchor on this expedition. The journey from Digby to Four Corners should've taken a week, but it needed to be doubled due to my low constitution."
"Low constitution, my ass!" Nathan mumbled.
"Vin!" JD grasped the tracker's hand as he dismounted. "God, it's good to see you."
Tanner slapped JD on the arm. "Damn good to be home."
"You're free!" JD stated. "You got your named cleared and everything."
"Yup," Vin said and nodded.
"Don't got to worry about havin' a price on your head. Gosh, that's gotta feel good!" JD expounded, shaking Vin's arm.
"Yup," Vin said again, patting the pocket that held his important papers.
The others dismounted, greeting Nathan and JD with handshakes and backslaps. Buck thumped JD heartily, glad to see the young man again, and Josiah gave both Nathan and JD a bear hug. Even Chris stepped forward and gave them a vigorous handshake.
"I'll be glad to see the inside of that church again," Josiah added with a wistful smile. He rubbed his hands together saying, "Can't wait to get back to God's work."
"How'd it go?" Chris asked the sheriff. "You two run into any trouble?"
JD waved the question away. "Been pretty darn quiet here. Not much goin' on aside from Dick Heads and such."
Josiah and Chris both raised eyebrows, and Vin and Buck chuckled as they shook their heads. Nathan had pulled off Ezra's hat and was running a hand through his too-short hair while Ezra threw Buck pleading glances.
"How's he been?" JD asked anxiously. He watched as Nathan examined the gambler, knowing that Nathan had been aching to do this since the horrible telegram arrived. Jackson was a healer, and the ability to touch and feel and see his patient was more important than anything. Jackson's movements were almost greedy as he felt along the healing scar on Ezra's head.
Josiah sighed. "He's been pushing himself too hard."
"Can't ride for too long at a time," Vin added.
"Sleeps like the dead," Chris added.
"And gets cranky when you tell 'im it's time to quit," Buck completed.
"When his eyes get squinty like that, it means his head's hurtin 'im," Vin said with a gesture. Ezra squeezed his eyes shut in response and opened them all the wider.
"Won't admit it though," Chris stated.
"Doc Templeton sent along some medicines." Josiah tapped the bag that had been assigned to him once the group met up. "He's been behaving himself and taking them."
"Yeah, and when he says, 'I'm perfectly fine and more than capable of continuing for another hour'," Buck said with an affected accent, "That means he's about to drop."
"He's gonna put himself back in a bed if he keeps this up," Nathan muttered, feeling the gambler's forehead for a fever.
"I'm right here!" Ezra said in frustration, glaring at Nathan's hand but not doing anything to shove it away. Apparently he was too used to such ministrations. "I would insist that you please stop talking about me as if I'm still in a semi-conscious state."
Buck smiled sadly and patted his friend on the back. "Just glad to finally get back home." He looked to Nathan. "The trip has been a bit rough on him, but we took it slow. Met up with Chris and the others at Mudbank. He's been doin' pretty good most the time."
"Thank you!" Ezra said, exasperatedly pulling at his lapels as Nathan let go of him.
"God, it's great to have you back," JD said, stepping toward Ezra. The gambler extended a hand, but JD embraced him instead. Ezra looked startled, but returned the hug. "We were so worried about you," JD said softly as he clenched the thin conman tightly.
"I'm quite alright, Mr. Dunne," Ezra replied. He looked up when Nathan laid his hand on his shoulder. "Truly, I am."
"All we had was some telegrams to go by and I was just scared that…" JD continued breathlessly, pulling tighter.
"Nothing to worry about, JD," Ezra reassured. "See, I'm perfectly fine."
JD stepped back, nodding and wiping his eyes with the back of his hand, trying to not look embarrassed. "Yeah," he said and nodded. "You're all put together still," he said, patting Ezra on the chest.
Josiah watched the young sheriff with a smile, remembering the meeting that took place a week ago when they caught up with Buck and Ezra in Mudbank. Buck had to scold Josiah, telling him that he was afraid that Ezra would end up with a broken ribcage if Josiah didn't release him. The preacher laughed softly, seeing that same bewildered look on Ezra's face as JD stepped back.
The preacher recalled that Vin had been mostly silent during that reunion, almost embarrassed or guilty in his demeanor. Chris had tried to lecture Ezra about not waiting in Digby, but had ended up sounding more concerned than anything. They'd been glad to be together again, but what they really needed was to return home, to find all their members again and be whole.
JD smiled and then turned to another of the group to distract the others from what they'd just witnessed. "Glad you got your name cleared, Vin. Glad to have all you back again."
Vin nodded. "Good to be home."
"Yeah," Buck nodded. "Nothin' like comin' home after a long time away. Nothin' like bein' back among friends.
"Amen to that, brother," Josiah agreed.
"Perhaps we might adjourn to the saloon and toast our return?" Ezra stated. "We could also celebrate Mr. Tanner's good name."
"Sounds okay to me," Vin responded.
Nathan looked skeptical as he eyed his patient. "He up to it?"
Josiah tossed a paper packet to Nathan and said, "Put about a spoon of this in water. He'll last a bit longer."
Ezra could only sigh and shake his head. "They're doing it again," he said to Chaucer. The horse nuzzled him happily.
Josiah laughed deeply and patted Ezra on the shoulder. "It's good to be home," the preacher uttered.
Nathan and Ezra set the pace as they headed toward the saloon. The horses would be handed over to the livery boys to be cared for and settled in the stalls. The men would spend the rest of the afternoon in the saloon, celebrating the return of the Seven, and toasting Vin's good name.
The tracker smiled as he sat at the table, wondering if he should feel somehow different now that the bounty had been lifted. He looked across the table and laughed softly, seeing Nathan fussing over Ezra, and the gambler looking frustrated about the whole situation. 'Gonna want his feather bed in a minute or two,' he thought, noting the increased squint.
Buck was hassling JD. Chris was scanning the crowd in the saloon, finding his footing again. Josiah threw longing glances toward the church. Yeah, Vin thought. It was good to be home again. Finally, he could stay here without fear – his friends would no longer be imperiled by that bounty. In the end, he realized, that it wasn't the name that mattered so much, as the home.
God, it was good to be home.
THE END