Two Days Later

The hospital was silent as Alex helped Sydney pack up what little belongings Gage had with him. It had been very stressful the last few days especially since the police haven't gotten any closer in finding Walker or the other five men missing. And now, instead of going home to Texas, Gage will be leaving for a ranch in Kansas.

She handed Sydney a few folded up t-shirts then glanced up at Gage. Her friend sat on a chair staring out the window at the snow covered parking lot. For the last few days he's been distant, not really talking to either her or even Sydney. Wonder what was going through his mind right now?

Carter and Trivette came into the room with another agent behind them. Gage turned his head, took one look at the agents then rolled his eyes. This was so unlike him that it took Alex a second to hand Sydney Gage's coat. Trivette took a deep breath then dropped himself into a chair while Carter went towards Gage.

"Plane leaves in an hour." He rested his hands on his hips then shook his head. "I'm sorry, but your wife won't be able to come along. She'll be able to stay…."

Sydney shook her head. "I gotta get back to Texas to see how Meaghan and Josh is doing." She quickly swiped her hand across her face to hide the tears. "Will Gage be all right?"

"He should be. Agent Bentley will be with him all the way." Carter let out a heavy sigh as he shook his head. "It shouldn't be too long…."

"I'm still here you know." Gage took his coat from Sydney then gave her a kiss on the forehead. "Don't worry, Shorty. I'll be fine and I'll call you everyday." He glanced up at Agent Bentley. "I can do that, right?"

"Sure you can. We're giving each man twenty minutes during the day to talk to family." The agent smiled then picked up Gage's backpack. "Are you ready, sir?"

Gage took a deep breath before nodding his head. "Yeah, let's go." He gave Sydney one last hug before turning his attention back to Alex. "I'm real sorry, Alex."

Alex shook her head in confusion. "There's nothing to be sorry about, Gage." She went to give her friend a hug, however he shied away.

"No, it isn't fair. Walker should be here right now." He glanced at the both of them, picked up his bag then nodded at Carter. "No matter what it takes, find Walker."

Montana

After breakfast Walker made his way back to the small cabin still unsure as to what the rules were. So far it seemed he had a lot of free roam, just as long as he remained in the proper designated spots. Unfortunately, he had to walk in the freezing cold air with no coat on. Thankfully he was allowed a thick, hooded pullover to wear and it kept some of the chills at bay.

He quickly made his way back into the cabin thankful it had heat and frantically rubbed his arms to get warmth back into them. In the den he spotted three men from the other rooms playing a card game. He was about to ignore them and head to his room when he spotted a man sitting alone with his back against a wall.

The man looked up and his eyes got really big. "You!"

Walker knew the man all too well, he was the one that destroyed most of the sight out of his left eye. He quickly took a look around then motioned for the man to follow him. When Walker reached his room he saw it was empty. Good, that means they were doing chores and should be gone for awhile.

He quickly snatched up the notepad from his bed then wrote, "When did you arrive?"

"This morning." The man's eyes showed his confusion. "Not sure what is going on." He took a deep breath then pointed at Walker's left eye. "I am deeply sorry for the damage I have caused to your eye."

"It's okay, I can still see out of it." Walker shook his head. "Are you tattooed?"

"That I am." The man pulled his sleeve up to show Walker the numbers 0220 tattooed on his inner-forearm. "Did you get branded as well?"

Walker pulled his right ear back to show the man his still healing burn. "Yeah, I did."

The man shook his head. "We are just cattle to them." He stuck his hand out for a shake. "Name is Zadok Abijah, but most just call me Z. I am originally from Israel, but came here to the States a few years ago."

"And my name is Walker, but I go by Nathaniel here."

Z tapped the notebook with his finger. "What happened to your voice?"

"Lost it during a fight."

Just thinking about Gage caused Walker's spirit to suddenly sink and he fell onto his bunk. Where was his friend right now? Did he go home with the rest of the men or was he here? If Gage was indeed here, will he have to fight him again? If only Walker knew for certain about his friend, then maybe he wouldn't be feeling so depressed right now.

Z slumped down on the floor in front of Walker then ran his hands along his shaved scalp. "Any idea how long we may be here for?"

Walker nibbled on the pencil before writing down his response. "Most men have been here long enough to retire. They actually like it here."

The door to the room opened and in walked Hunter with a huge small on his face. "So you finally made yourself a friend!" He snatched Walker's notebook, but before he had a chance to read anything Z got it back. "You're keeping secrets now!"

William came in with a smirk on his face. "Looky there, he has a tattoo as well." He went and shoved Walker in the shoulders. "I don't like you, pig." He pointed a finger in Walker's face. "Better not bring him in here again."

Walker quickly stood to his full height which unfortunately only came to William's shoulders. He didn't know why he was angry and in a way it scared him. Usually he would be able to calm himself down, but he was ready to beat William's face in. Walker's fists tightened by his side and he knew if William was to confront him one more time he may not be able to control himself.

Hound came into the room, his pistol as usual cradled in his arms. "Break it up you two." He went up to the two men and stood between them. "Will, you really think you'll feel comfortable beating up a senior citizen?" He then turned his attention to Walker. "0535, you think you can take him?"

William pounded his fists together as he rotated his neck around. "I will feel no pity, sir on giving this man the beating of his life!"

"Very well. 0535, you will be set for a fight in two days. Better rest up and eat well."

Walker Ranch

Life seemed to have stopped for Angela, she really didn't know what to do now that it was confirmed her father won't be coming home. She sat on her bed hugging the teddy bear she has had since birth, a gift from her father. Her body slowly rocked as her mind went through all the possibilities. If Uncle Gage was indeed coming home, then that could only mean one thing: Her father was dead. Just thinking about him dying made her whimper and cry out for him.

A light knock came at the closed door and she swiftly wiped her eyes on her teddy bear before answering. "Come in!"

The door opened to reveal Tavon with a plate of food in his hands. "Mom told me you might be hungry."

"Thanks, Tavon." Angela waved the boy forward. "How are you doing?"

Tavon shrugged. "Dad is gone again, but I heard Uncle Gage is okay." A frown crossed his face as he placed the plate on the nightstand. "I'm sorry about your dad."

Angela's tears threatened to resurface, but she held them in check with a deep sigh. "Don't worry, my dad will be fine." She said, lying to Tavon and herself. "He'll be home in no time."

"I hope so. My dad hasn't been the same since Uncle Walker disappeared." He bit his lower lip, looked over his shoulder then leaned in closer to Angela. "Jaxon hasn't been the same either. He's been hacking more, and I'm worried about him." He took a deep breath then shook his head. "He spends more time on the computer now than with me."

"Your brother is going through a rough time right now." Angela shook her head as she picked up the plate of food. "Have you told your mom yet on what Jaxon is doing?"

Tavon quickly shook his head. "He'll get into serious trouble if I did."

Angela took a deep breath then put the sandwich down. "It's illegal to hack, Tavon. He needs to stop before he becomes somebody that your daddy needs to chase down." Her motherly instincts began to take over helping her out in dealing with her father's disappearance. If she kept her mind occupied on other things, then maybe it might help her to move on. "Where is he now?"

"Across the hall." Tavon pouted. "You're going in there, aren't you?"

"I have to." Angela grabbed the sandwich so she can take it with her. "I'm just going to talk to him."

It only took a few seconds to get across the hall and to the small office where the boys currently slept. Here she spotted Jaxon at the computer typing away, grumbling as he did so. He was so preoccupied that Angela was able to sit down on the camp cot and eat her sandwich. When she was finished she gently nudged Jaxon's shoulder making him jump to his feet.

"Angie!" He quickly turned the computer screen off then shook his head. "When did you come in?"

"A little while ago." Angela reached down and turned off the main power to the computer tower. "No more computer, Jaxon. You need to stop this…."

The boy's eyes began to mist up as he tightened his fists against his sides. "And what about Uncle Walker? Who will find him?"

"Jaxon, you are only ten years old! Let your dad and the FBI do their job…."

"I want my dad home!" He stomped his foot against the ground while jutting out his bottom lip. "He made a promise to me and he's not keeping it!"

Angela knew about this all too well, after all her father had also made her several promises that he eventually had to break because of his job. Unfortunately it came with being a lawman's child and right now Jaxon was just too young to understand.

She took a deep breath then shook her head. "Your dad is a lawman, he will be called out to help catch criminals and find those good guys who go missing, like my father. Give him time and he will come home."

"I don't want to give him time, I want him here now!" Jaxon swiped the desk with his hand, knocking off several papers and a few pens. "Just leave me alone!"

Jaxon ran out of the room and down the stairs, to where she could only guess. Angela took a deep, shaky breath then started to clean up the mess. As she put the items back on the dresser, her attention went to a picture perched high on a shelve. She tiptoed to get it down and when she did, she saw it was of her father and mother. A drop of water hit the glass as the tears fell once more from Angela's eyes.

"Oh dad, please come home to us." She hugged the picture to her heart wishing instead it was her father's warm embrace. "We need you dad, everybody here does."

Kansas

The drive down the long, dirt road reminded Gage of the farmland of Texas and his heart ached to be home. He took a look out the window and saw a large ranch house with several smaller buildings scattered around the property. In front of the main house he could see several police officers pacing the lawn and mingled in with them were men in large, winter coats. Gage's heart began to beat faster as the car stopped and an officer made his way to the driver's side.

"Hey there, Agent Bentley." The man checked the clipboard he was holding then went to the passenger side. "Hello, Mr. Gage. My name is Sergeant Jeffrey Maplewood and I'm going to show you to your bunkhouse. If you can follow me please, it's this way."

Gage slowly got out of the car, surprised to feel that the Kansas air wasn't as chili as he had thought. He followed the man down a warn path till they reached a small little cabin with a wooden rocking chair in front. The door opened and out ran Aiden with a huge smile on his face.

"Gage! Oh man am I ever glad to see you!" He gave Gage a hug as four other men came out of the small cabin. "We've been worried sick about you." His smile quickly faded. "Where's Z?"

"He's still missing." Gage allowed the other men to give him a hug before he made his way into the cabin. "Have you all been able to see your family?"

Nathan nodded as he showed Gage a set of bunk beds. "Yeah, before they took us here." He patted the top mattress then shook his head. "Can't believe they won't let us go home yet."

Truman crossed his arms, a look of frustration evident on his face. "They think we have Stockholm Syndrome or something crazy like that." He shook his head. "I just want to be free, you know what I'm saying?" He waved his hands out and started to pace. "We're back to being locked up."

"Yeah, but with ice cream and movies." Eric said with sarcasm. "Really? They think we would be happy with just some minor treats?"

Aiden shrugged. "The ice cream was good." This got him a smack on the head from Nathan. "What!"

Nathan shook his head. "Right now we have to keep our mind focused on what is going on here." He took a deep breath, rested his hands on his hips then began to pace as well. "Gage, did they put you in a hospital?"

"Yeah, for two days to make sure I was healthy. Why?"

The door to the cabin opened and in walked Agent Bentley. "Gage, we need to see you at the main house. Come with me."

Gage obediently followed unsure as to what was going on, but knowing whatever it was had to be done. Bentley led him through a side door in the large ranch house and here Gage could see how extravagate the place really was. The kitchen, which he was currently in was big enough to feed all the men at the ranch and the dining area could sit at least twenty. To his right he could see a massive open room with several couches, chairs and a fireplace which told Gage that this place wasn't a home.

"What is this place anyway?" He asked as he was led down a wide hallway. "Why here?"

Agent Bentley waved to a room on Gage's left. "This is an old resort that is now used primarily for the government. And the why, it's easy to guard." He closed the door then straightened his suit coat. "So, Gage how are you?"

Gage looked around to see he was in a room with only a table, chair and a video camera on a tripod. "What is this?"

"We need to interview you, see what you know…."

"I know nothing! Can't you guys get it through your heads that whoever took us was actually intelligent!" He rubbed his shaved scalp as he started to pace. "What you all should be doing is trying to figure out where Walker and Z went to!"

"We're trying…."

"Bull! Get me out of here…." Gage's voice caught in his throat as two agents, all in black combat clothing burst through the door. "You can't do this! I have rights!"

One of the men held his hand up as he slowly inched his way towards Gage. "Mr. Gage, please quiet down we don't want to do anything to harm you."

"I like to see you try! Wouldn't that look great on the front page, huh? FBI attacks Texas Ranger that was held hostage…." Another man came into the room, this one wearing a suit. "Great, another agent."

The man shook his head. "No, I'm a psychologist from KU. I've been flown in to evaluate your mental health." He waved at the agents. "Please, that doesn't help." He then ushered the agents outside the room then locked the door. "Sorry about that, they are a bit testy right now. Not really sure who to trust." He gave Gage a genuine smile as he turned on the video camera. "I'm going to ask only simple questions. Respond to them natural and truthfully. Now, lets began, shall we?"