It was officially night now. The dusk had turned to dark and Buck could no longer make out anything more than the passing headlights on the few vehicles that travelled down the road that passed Chris' ranch. None of them were slowing to turn in, not that he had been expecting to see that. They were six for dinner tonight. He was as sure of that as he'd been of just about anything in his life.

They were six for the team now as well if his assumptions were correct. The way he had if figured, Ezra had already sent in written notice confirming the "I quit" scenario that had gone down earlier. (Was that really only this morning? he wondered to himself.) And Travis and company really had no choice but to accept it. It wasn't like they could force him to come in a do the job. Especially his job.

The notion of a team without the charming southerner left him feeling a bit ambivalent. He hadn't really warmed to the man that much. Something just under the surface left him uncertain of how reliable a colleague they had. Rumors were just that, unsubstantiated bits of information filtered through God knew how many folks with there own agenda. And he knew there were plenty of rumors floating around about him as well, mostly in reference to his romantic life. Although he had started a few of the more interesting ones. All that being said, the issues around Ezra were different – more serious. And Buck was a firm believer in the old smoke and fire cliché, and he didn't want anyone on this team getting burned.

Still, he had to admit, if only to himself, Ezra was kinda fun to have around. Few people could drive Chris to distraction with what appeared to be minimal effort. And his old friend needed to be brought down a notch or two from time to time.

He knew JD was going to be more upset if it was true. The kid liked Standish, maybe a bit more than was good for him. Everybody needed role models, and there was no question the kid tried to model himself after aspects of all the others on the team, generally picking the better qualities. Buck could see trouble ahead if JD decided to take on Ezra's "damn the consequences" approach to dealing with things. While none of them were sticklers for the rules, Standish was a little looser than the rest, and JD was definitely the sort to find himself over his head in record time.

Turning back to look at the rest of the room he did a quick evaluation of the mood. Almost everybody was trying to keep busy and pretend the how to deal with Ezra discussion hadn't really taken place. It might just as well not have, given the fact no conclusions were reached. Yes, they all had a better understanding of what might be going on, having been briefed on the letter from Maude and given a thumbnail sketch of Vin's take on the situation. That didn't help much when it came to dealing with the reality of the situation.

Nathan had summed things up quite efficiently. "We are in a job where you have to have complete faith in the rest of your team. We don't have it in him, and it doesn't seem like he has it in us."

Vin had argued that he did trust Ezra, but a one in six approval wasn't going to cut it.

"He's not one of us Vin, and doesn't want to be. All the talk in the world won't change that."

Vin had shrugged lightly at that point, and moved over to the seat where he still sat waiting. Nathan wisely didn't make a move to mend fences, since he really hadn't said anything wrong, only what he felt.

There had another good half hour of discussion on the matter of which, if any of them, would actually sit Ezra down for a long chat. The was a concerted effort to ensure Chris didn't win that point, and surprising it didn't take to long for him to agree. 'Oil and a lit match' was the phrase JD had used to describe the probable outcome. The final verdict had been to agree to wait and see what Ezra had to say, and to try for figure out exactly what he really meant, and what if anything they could do about it. There wasn't much to be done until that point arrived.

Now, with dinner hour at hand, it was looking like that point would arrive, at least not tonight.

"Hate to say it Vin, but it looks like you called this one wrong."

Buck walked away from the front window and over to where Vin sat quietly watching the fire dance in the stone hearth.

"He'll be here."

"Chris said suppertime, and I don't know about you, but I am long past being ready to eat."

"Getting a might hungry myself." Nathan added. He, like Buck, had long given up on the seventh member of the team showing up. He'd set the table with enough places for all, but would have wagered almost all he owned on one seat remaining empty. He knew he should be more upset by that, and he had to admit it did bother him, but he also knew that there was likely very little anyone could do about it. Ezra Standish was simply a puzzle they had not managed to solve.

JD came from the kitchen, carefully balancing the three bowls he carried to the dining table. "Well, when he does get here, he'll have to settle for left overs. This is all out and ready to eat, so I say it's supper time."

The movement toward the table was arrested by Chris's undeniable counterorder. "It's supper time when I say it is, and it ain't yet. This will all keep a while longer."

Smiling from his station in the kitchen, Josiah slipped the tray of cold meats back into the fridge, pleased with the delay. While 'fashionably late' was a common state for the undercover expert, Josiah was certain in this case there was far deeper reasoning behind the tardiness. But like Vin, he harboured the belief Ezra would appear. Maybe it was more a genuine hope that would happen. They needed him on the team, and not just professionally. More importantly, he was pretty sure that Ezra needed them. Whether that would all somehow work out was another question altogether.

Josiah leaned into the door frame, watching the silent interplay in the room. Vin hadn't moved from his spot. His patience was truly impressive, although one didn't get to be one of the topped ranked snipers in the country without that skill being well honed. Buck and JD were the opposite. Both were anxious, but in manifested differently. The younger man was, as expected, fidgety and bordering on hyper. How that energy contained itself on a stakeout was a mystery none of them had been able to come up with an answer to. Buck, on the other hand, appeared far more relaxed about the waiting, unless you knew the man. Fingers tapped against his leg, his eyes shifting constantly. There was a vigilance about him that let Josiah know that the moment a car entered the long driveway, Buck would be the first to hear it.

It was watching Chris that Josiah found to be the most educational. Much of what he was seeing was not what he'd expected. It was obvious Chris had nothing planned for the holiday. Other than a few cards stacked, but not actually displayed, on the mantel and a small childish ornament hung from there as well, the place gave no indication of the season. Not surprising knowing the personal history there. Chris hadn't celebrated much of anything in recent years, and while no one would call him a sentimentalist, at least not to his face, certain occasions remained much harder for him to cope with. He didn't draw as far back into his shell as he once had, but there was still a lingering grief that time did not heal. Those facts notwithstanding, he had instantly abandoned his time of solitary reflection to rally the troops around one of there own, even if the recipient was less than enthusiastic about the effort. This whole evening, difficult as it was, probably was exactly what Chris needed.

Truth be told, Josiah expected none of the team had much planned in the way of celebrations, at least not for Christmas eve. Nettie had invited them all for dinner on the 25th, and it was likely six of them would show up. Vin always like spending time with the closest thing he'd known to a family, and JD was still sweet on Casey, and any excuse to spend time there was welcomed. As for the rest – well, being alone was alright, but on a day that focused so much on family, not having one made the day go by so much more slowly. Good food and company helped chase that loneliness away to a degree.

Josiah imagined that feeling was a part of what was pushing Ezra to the edge. Despite being the only one of the team who actually still had a parent (possibly two, as he had yet to even mention his father), there was little family bonding happening there. Not connecting with whatever family you have was even more poignant at this time. Josiah's own heart ached that he simply did not have a strong connection with his own sister, but her mental state removed that from his reality.

The clock ticked by, accentuating the silence of the group. JD's fidgeting got worse, to the point Buck was giving serious thought to tying him into a chair. A bit of roping would certainly prove distracting for at least a few minutes, but he doubted the others would support the action. Well, maybe Chris would based on the scowl on his face.

With a final frustrated glance at the clock on the wall, Chris sighed loudly. "Fine JD. Put the rest of the food out. Don't want Buck passing out from malnutrition."

"With this spread he's likely to anyway. Deep fried zucchini and salsas do NOT qualify as healthy vegetables." Nathan shook his head as he jumped up to help with the serving. "This is not a lean meat on this platter. And you do know there are salads out there whose main ingredient is not mayonnaise?" he aimed his questions at Josiah as he stuck a spoon into the potato salad, macaroni salad and egg salad bowls.

"Relax mother. There is Caesar salad coming."

"Sure, with enough dressing on it to drown those poor defenceless croutons."

Buck grinned. "Not to mention all the cheese and bacon!"

The joking continue as more meat, buns, chips and condiments were added to the spread until eventually everything was ready.

"You joining us Vin?" Chris's voice was soft, almost apologetic. He really wished he'd been wrong about all of this.

"Be rude to start eating before everyone is here."

"Everyone is."

The two men held each other's stare for a good 30 seconds before Vin looked away. A moment later he stood, but instead of the going to the table he made his way to the door. An instant before he was going to speak, Chris saw the headlights of a vehicle coming up the driveway. It was to dark to make out the model, but it was clear they weren't from a Jag. The room went deathly still when the police car stopped at the foot of the walkway.

"Stay here." Chris headed out, fully aware that not one of the team had listened to his command, and not really caring.

"Help you officer?"

"Good evening sir. Would you be Chris Larabee?" Getting a terse nod, he continued. "Yes, well, we have you as the emergency contact name for Ezra Standish."

"Shit." Vin's utterance was soft, but was enough to be heard and the cop turned his attention for a moment before looking back to Chris.

"I'm sorry to tell you this sir, but there has been an automobile accident involving Mr. Standish and another vehicle. I'm afraid it appears to be quite serious."

M7-M7-M7-M7-M7-M7-M7

tbc