With a grim look on his face Chris turned around and clasped hands with
Buck and shared a long serious look with him.
"Alright, this is what we are going to do." With that said he started scribbling on a piece of parchment he had grabbed from his pack.
Three hours later a coded tapping at the door brought Buck's head up sharply from the mattress where he had been dozing lightly.
"Is it..?" He asked Chris who was wide awake and sitting by the door listening to the tapping.
"Sssh!" Chris hissed and then proceeded back to listening to the tapping. Finally three long knocks and a short tap later Chris got up and let in a shaken JD.
"Well boy?" He questioned
"It's all d..d..done Sir Christo. Not a saddle in Eagle pass left uncut, well except for ours of course." JD stuttered over his words his teeth chattering loudly.
"Good job lad, now get in here and warm your bones up. You're half frozen, what did you do fall in a lake or something"
"No sir, had to hide in a horse trough on the way back to avoid one of the slavers." JD answered from the fireplace where he was desperately rubbing his hands together in an effort to gain back some of his lost warmth.
"Don't call me sir, kid." Chris said but it was said warmly and his voice held a touch of respect for the kid.
"Awwww, you're rubbing off on him kid!" Buck said giving JD's head an affectionate rub.
"Go suck a cow Buck!" Chris said fiercely but a hint of a smile pulled at his lip. "Everyone get some rest while you can, in a few hours you'll be wishing you were babes on your mother's laps, I'll keep watch."
With that he turned his back to the men and settled on a strategic position near the door. The other two men settled on the bed and chair but sleep eluded them and thoughts of the future plagued them both.
Sometime around three in the morning a scratching at the door brought all three of the men's heads up from their thoughts. JD gulped nervously and tightened his grip on his borrowed weapon. He had fought Buck and Chris tooth and nail to be here but now that it was about to happen he wasn't so sure. He really didn't want to die, at least not in the inn he had born and raised in. Worriedly he glanced at the bulking form of Buck who was leaning against the wall completely at ease. Buck glanced over and gave the kid a reassuring, roguish smile. JD half-hardly gave him a smile back but he felt better.
"Damn Kid shouldn't be here, too young for this sort of stuff! Hell, he'll be lucky if he can swing that knife I gave him. He looks like he's going to wet his pants. Damn Kid!" Buck thought to himself and then smiled at the boy in an attempt to calm him.
Chris watched the two with amusement "Looks like Buck found himself another tagalong" He thought to himself and then his thoughts turned dark as he remembered the last tagalong Buck had and he turned his thoughts back to concentrating on the door. There was a muffled curse and the door creaked onimensly.
"So it starts." Chris whispered with a gleam in his eyes and then the door opened with a bang.
Do you like? Suggestions are welcome. I hope you enjoyed this.
"Alright, this is what we are going to do." With that said he started scribbling on a piece of parchment he had grabbed from his pack.
Three hours later a coded tapping at the door brought Buck's head up sharply from the mattress where he had been dozing lightly.
"Is it..?" He asked Chris who was wide awake and sitting by the door listening to the tapping.
"Sssh!" Chris hissed and then proceeded back to listening to the tapping. Finally three long knocks and a short tap later Chris got up and let in a shaken JD.
"Well boy?" He questioned
"It's all d..d..done Sir Christo. Not a saddle in Eagle pass left uncut, well except for ours of course." JD stuttered over his words his teeth chattering loudly.
"Good job lad, now get in here and warm your bones up. You're half frozen, what did you do fall in a lake or something"
"No sir, had to hide in a horse trough on the way back to avoid one of the slavers." JD answered from the fireplace where he was desperately rubbing his hands together in an effort to gain back some of his lost warmth.
"Don't call me sir, kid." Chris said but it was said warmly and his voice held a touch of respect for the kid.
"Awwww, you're rubbing off on him kid!" Buck said giving JD's head an affectionate rub.
"Go suck a cow Buck!" Chris said fiercely but a hint of a smile pulled at his lip. "Everyone get some rest while you can, in a few hours you'll be wishing you were babes on your mother's laps, I'll keep watch."
With that he turned his back to the men and settled on a strategic position near the door. The other two men settled on the bed and chair but sleep eluded them and thoughts of the future plagued them both.
Sometime around three in the morning a scratching at the door brought all three of the men's heads up from their thoughts. JD gulped nervously and tightened his grip on his borrowed weapon. He had fought Buck and Chris tooth and nail to be here but now that it was about to happen he wasn't so sure. He really didn't want to die, at least not in the inn he had born and raised in. Worriedly he glanced at the bulking form of Buck who was leaning against the wall completely at ease. Buck glanced over and gave the kid a reassuring, roguish smile. JD half-hardly gave him a smile back but he felt better.
"Damn Kid shouldn't be here, too young for this sort of stuff! Hell, he'll be lucky if he can swing that knife I gave him. He looks like he's going to wet his pants. Damn Kid!" Buck thought to himself and then smiled at the boy in an attempt to calm him.
Chris watched the two with amusement "Looks like Buck found himself another tagalong" He thought to himself and then his thoughts turned dark as he remembered the last tagalong Buck had and he turned his thoughts back to concentrating on the door. There was a muffled curse and the door creaked onimensly.
"So it starts." Chris whispered with a gleam in his eyes and then the door opened with a bang.
Do you like? Suggestions are welcome. I hope you enjoyed this.