The River Wild

by Violette

Part 2

A/N: Sorry for the delays in posting this! I forgot that I hadn't posted the second part yet :-) Thanks for all the great reviews! My personal web site is down temporarily, but I expect it to be back up soon.
AU - ATF Universe

Disclaimer: I don't own them. I'm just taking them out to play for a while.

Warnings: Language, violence, mayhem

Rating: PG

Genre: gen, drama

Summary: Ezra, Vin, and Chris are on their way home, transporting a prisoner. Should be a piece of cake. Right?

Acknowledgements: Thanks to NT for the last-minute beta and also to Mog for creating the ATF Universe in which I am so fond of playing.

Notes: This is an answer to the River challenge for the Writer's Roundup 2005 zine.

The Roundup Zine Challenge 2005: offered by NotTasha
A river must figure in your story. The guys can go down a river, a creek, a stream ... a canal? Whether they're in a boat, a rubber raft, an inner-tube or just swimming, it's up to you. They can even be riding, driving, walking alongside the river. But the journey along the waterway must be a part of the story. It could even be a man-made "wild river ride" at a water park. The story must contain at least one of the following items: a traffic ticket, nachos, an overloaded vehicle, a ghost town, or obnoxious singing . You must use five of the following words: roadway (or Rodeway), cracker, soliloquy, pistachio, devil, simple, bobble or bauble, topography, maelstrom and/or freakish. The story should be under 5,000 words.

Pain exploded in Ezra's arm as he bounced off of another rock. He yelped in pain, his mouth filling with water when the current sucked him under again. He struggled to the surface in time to realize that he was being dragged over another waterfall. His curses were drowned out by the sound of water crashing onto the rocks below. Certain he was about to die, Ezra closed his eyes and sent a silent goodbye to his friends.

No one was more stunned than Ezra himself when he found himself floating in another pool of calm water at the bottom of the falls. His eyes widening in disbelief, he gazed upward, estimating the height of the waterfall to be at least forty feet. Ezra paddled feebly with his right arm, his left dragging uselessly in the water. He nearly cried in relief when his feet touched the bottom of the river. Resting a moment, he looked around, hoping to find some signs of civilization. A spot of color on the other side of the river drew his attention.

"Vin?"

Ezra squinted, hoping his eyes hadn't deceived him. Caught up in some branches, the dark red shirt – and the body that wore it – bobbed gently in the current.

"No, no, no, no, no," Ezra muttered fearfully as he pushed himself back into the icy water. Heedless of his own safety, he swam awkwardly to the other side, praying that the current wouldn't take him before he reached Vin.

7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7

"What happened?" Buck stood at the door, his frame radiating the same tension as the rest of the group.

Chris sighed, and gestured for Buck and the rest of his men to come inside the motel room. Without pleasantries, he gave them the bare facts, unsurprised at the worried looks that took up residence on their faces.

"Dammit, can't them boys go anywhere without gettin' in trouble?" Buck cursed.

"Our brothers do seem to have a knack for getting into difficulty," Josiah agreed unhappily.

"I brought the full pack." Nathan indicated the oversized duffel he used to pack medical supplies. "Known' those two, I figured we'd need it."

"What about Macklin?" JD asked absently, his worry evident in the unconscious wringing of his hands.

"No sign of him, either." Chris sat on the edge of his bed. "Ain't much we can do 'til morning, so you'd best get some sleep."

"Brought your stuff." Buck handed him a bag with a change of clothes and his hiking boots.

"Thanks."

No more was said, but the worry was plain to see as the men filed out and went to their respective rooms. Chris doubted any of them would get much sleep this night.

7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7

The normally-animated face was slack and pale in the fading daylight. There was a tightness in his chest that Ezra couldn't ignore as his hand hovered over the man he called 'friend.' Swallowing hard, he pressed his fingers against Vin's neck, hoping the numbed digits would be able to detect the signs of life. His hope faded quickly when he felt nothing.

"Don't do this to me, Vin," Ezra pleaded, slapping the man's face hard. "I can't go back there without you." Grabbing the front of Vin's shirt, he lifted him off the sandy ground and shook him hard. "Please."

There was no response. Ezra turned away, curling himself into a tight ball. A tear slipped silently down his face as exhaustion and cold finally overtook him.

7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7

Wade Macklin grinned, his smile a tobacco-stained flash in the darkness. Tanner was dead, and from the look of things, Standish wasn't far behind him. Still, he hadn't gotten this far without being thorough. He picked up a heavy branch and stepped out of the trees.

7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7

Still on the edge of sleep, Ezra rolled over, inhaling sharply as pain flared in his arm. He opened his eyes, blinking to clear the blurry images in front of him. One shape resolved itself into a familiar, menacing form.

"Shit," Ezra breathed, forcing his uncooperative body to move. The branch descended, but instead of connecting with his head, as Macklin intended, the blow landed across his back. Ezra saw stars, falling sideways at the impact. He could only watch helplessly as Macklin lifted the branch again.

But the blow never came. A body erupted from the trees, hitting Macklin in a flying tackle. The branch flew from the gun merchant's hand and he tumbled down the bank toward the river, landing in the water with a resounding splash. Macklin floundered for a minute until the current pulled him away.

Ezra grinned. "Impeccable timing, Mr. Tanner."

Vin smiled at him, then closed his eyes and toppled to the ground.

"Vin!" Ezra pushed himself up, crawling after him when he couldn't get to his feet.

Vin rolled perilously close to the water, but thankfully came to rest at the river's edge.

Ezra collapsed beside him, closing his eyes against the waves of pain assaulting him. "Vin, wake up."

The only response was a moan.

"I don't think I can haul you back up the hill," Ezra said. "Come to think of it, I don't think I can get myself up the hill, either."

A muffled chuckle game from the prone form beside him. "I've fallen and I can't get up."

Ezra laughed, despite the pain it caused. He could feel a bubble of hysteria building, and struggled to quash it.

Vin slowly pushed himself onto all fours. "C'mon, Ez. Gotta get back up there."

Ezra sighed, gazing forlornly up the hill. He finally managed to maneuver himself onto his hands and knees. "After you, Vin."

Side by side, the two exhausted men crawled up the slope, collapsing into a pile of leaves once they reached the top.

"Gotta start a fire," Vin said, shivering. "Damn cold out here." He reached for a few nearby sticks and branches.

"Please tell me you aren't planning to rub two sticks together," Ezra moaned.

"Nope." Vin reached into his pocket and retrieved a small plastic tube. "Matches."

Ezra arched an eyebrow. "Waterproof?"

"Of course."

Ezra gave him a broad grin. "Thank goodness for modern-day mountain men."

Giving him a half-hearted glare, Vin poked him in the shoulder. "Still need somethin' to burn."

Groaning, Ezra complied, collecting as many branches and sticks as he could find. It didn't take long for Vin to start a fire and soon, the two men were huddled together near the roaring blaze, relishing the warmth after their long exposure to the cold.

"How you doin'?" Vin asked.

"I don't know," Ezra said. "If I look half as bad as you, then I'd have to say I'm doing poorly."

Vin snorted. "Hell, I feel like a damn pinball, banging off 'a them rocks and such."

"I encountered a few of those," Ezra said, gesturing to his injured arm.

"It broken?"

Ezra nodded. "How's your leg?" He gestured to the long gash on Vin's thigh.

"Hurts like a sum'bitch."

"We're quite the pair." Ezra sighed. "They're not going to be happy."

Vin grimaced.

There was no need to explain who 'they' were. Ezra blew out a breath. He could already picture the disapproving faces of their teammates. He and Vin shared a look and Ezra had to smile. At least they were alive. And he wasn't alone. That was more than enough for him.

7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7

"We got a body," Weston said without preamble when Josiah joined him at the bridge. "They're bringing it to the clinic in town."

Josiah closed his eyes, offering up a silent prayer. He had stayed behind while the others joined the search teams, knowing that someone needed to be here in case of just such an occurrence.

"I can drive you there," Weston offered.

"Thank you, Sheriff. I'd appreciate that." Josiah followed him to his car, his shoulders slumped and dread sitting heavily in his heart.

Sensing his distress, Weston drove them to town as quickly as possible.

Josiah nodded his appreciation when they reached the clinic much faster than he'd anticipated.

"You want company?" Weston offered

"I'd appreciate it."

"Morgue is in the basement." Weston led him to the elevator.

Once inside, Josiah's heart began to hammer in his chest. He truly dreaded seeing what lay under the sheet, but it had to be done. He took a breath and nodded at the morgue attendant. The sheet was pulled back and Josiah steeled himself one last time before looking down at the body. Relief flooded through him when he didn't recognize the person who lay there. His shoulders slumped as the tension drained out of him.

"Which one is it?" Weston asked, mistaking his posture for despair.

"It's not," Josiah replied, straightening with a grin. "I don't recognize him."

"Not Macklin, either?"

Josiah shook his head. "Nope."

Weston scratched his head and smiled. "Guess Larabee was right."

Josiah tilted his head curiously.

"Told him about the body over the radio, but he insisted it wasn't either of his boys."

Josiah chuckled. "Chris doesn't know how to give up."

"I'm starting to see that."

7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7

"You all right?" Vin's worried, blood-smeared face looked down at him.

Ezra frowned. "Huh?"

"Shit," Vin cursed.

Looking around, Ezra suddenly remembered what had happened. They had been shuffling along, leaning on each other, when his foot had tangled in a thorn bush and he had tripped, landing on his broken arm and dragging Vin down with him.

"I'm fine," Ezra said, the harsh cough that escaped him belying that statement.

Vin rolled his eyes. "Sure, you are."

Struggling to his feet, Ezra swayed a minute before Vin's grip steadied him. "How much further?"

Vin shrugged, then winced. "Don't know. We prob'ly got washed a few miles from the road, at least."

Ezra sighed, forcing himself to put one foot in front of the other. "Have I told you how much I hate the wilderness?"

Vin laughed, then started to cough.

"You sound terrible," Ezra remarked.

"Pot 'n kettle, Ez," Vin muttered.

Ezra smirked. Pot and kettle, indeed.

7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7

Leaning his head back, Chris took a drink from his water bottle, squinting up at the late afternoon sun. It would be dark in a few hours and if they hadn't found Vin and Ezra by then... He pushed the thought out of his head. He knew how unlikely it was that they would survive another night in the cold, with no food, no shelter, and inadequate clothing. His men were tough, but even tough men had their limits.

"Coming, Chris?"

Chris nodded to Buck and continued on, pushing through the tangled brush in hopes that maybe behind that next tree, he'd find his men. He didn't want to contemplate finding them in the river.

"I wonder who that guy is that they found?" JD pondered.

"Don't know, kid," Buck replied. "Could be a hiker or somethin'."

"It's wrong of me, since I know that man has a family, too," Nathan said, softly, "but I'm glad it was him instead of Ez or Vin."

"Me, too, Nathan," Chris said, patting him on the arm as they continued their slow progress.

7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7

"This sucks."

Vin chuckled at the uncharacteristic crudeness of Ezra's remark. "Yep."

Night had fallen, but the moon was bright and they had decided to continue walking as long as they were able. Both of them were limping, now, and though they were moving slowly, they were at least making some progress. Neither man was looking forward to another cold night.

"Vin," Ezra said suddenly, squinting into the darkness. "I think I see something."

Vin stared into the woods, eventually spotting a faint glow amidst the trees. "I see it."

"You think..."

"Light means people, Ez," Vin said. "Usually."

"Lead on."

Together, they started forward again, making halting progress toward the light.

7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7

Chris sat next to the fire, sipping coffee from a tin cup. He was starting to lose hope of ever finding his missing men. It hadn't been said aloud, but Chris knew the search would end tomorrow, one way or another. He and the others would keep looking, but the rescue teams would be heading back in the morning. He glanced at the small tents, wondering if his men were able to sleep tonight. He certainly couldn't.

Stretching the kinks out of his back, Chris stood, draining the last of his coffee. He needed to get some rest, if he hoped to do any good in the morning. Starting for his tent, he stopped, frowning at the sound of crackling he heard coming from the surrounding woods. He cocked his head, listening carefully.

When he heard the sound again, he quietly reached into his pack and pulled out his gun, then crept behind a tree at the edge of the small clearing. Weston had said there were bears and wolves out here and it wouldn't do to be caught unaware if one should attack. He slipped off the safety as the noise drew closer.

"Don't think ya need that, cowboy," a familiar voice called from the shadows.

"Vin." Relief flooded through Chris as he stuck the gun in his waistband and headed toward his friend.

Vin and Ezra shuffled into the dimly lit clearing, dropping ungracefully to the ground near the fire.

Chris shook his head. "You guys look like shit."

"Nice to see you, too," Ezra said hoarsely.

"Sound like shit too." Chris grinned. It was the best thing he had heard all night.

Vin gave him a one-finger salute.

"Mr. Larabee," Ezra complained. "I expect reimbursement for my ruined wardrobe."

"Hey guys!" Chris yelled, ignoring Ezra's grumbling.

A grunt came from one of the tents and Nathan poked his head out, blearily looking around. His eyes widened when they lit on the two bedraggled men by the fire. "Holy..."

"Aw hell," Ezra groaned when Nathan emerged from the tent with his duffel bag.

Chris sat back and grinned as first Nathan, then JD and Buck descended upon their two wayward teammates. His men were somewhat worse for wear, but they were alive and in one piece. That was good enough for him.

There may be a sequel to this at some point...