Nils looked up from the forge, his brow furrowing. "Lucas, what are you doing in town? After what happened, I… well, I kinda figured…"
The rancher shook his head, pulling a badge from his pocket. "Territorial marshal asked me to take over for a few days."
"Something happen to Micah?"
"Not exactly. It'll be cleared up in a few days."
"…How are you taking it?"
"Taking what?"
"…Well, I mean… I don't reckon you're too happy about what happened. Mark and Jenny… they're young, sure, but… they both should've known better. You certainly raised Mark-"
"Mark isn't the father!"
"…Well I sure am glad to hear that. I thought it kinda strange… Jenny and Jeff having been together."
"Even if he was, it wouldn't be any of your concern! Jenny knows she made a mistake; she needs help, not folks talking about her wrong choices!"
"…I'm sorry, Luke… I didn't mean to-"
"Lucas! Where have you been?! I've been looking all over!"
"What's the matter, Amos?"
"Jenny wired from Pine Valley; Mark's in trouble!"
Lucas tore the piece of paper from the man's hand, his grip on his rifle tightening as he read the telegram.
Lucas McCain
North Fork, New Mexico
Mark's been shot
At cabin north of Granite Pass
Meet me at the creek
Jenny Lincoln
Pine Valley, New Mexico
"Tell Doc to get a team and meet us up there!"
Without another word, Lucas jumped on his horse and raced out of town. Questions, regrets, and concerns swirled in the father's head as he rode; the whys, hows, and what ifs leaving a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach.
Upon reaching the creek, Lucas called for Jenny as he began surveying the area. Five minutes had passed before he jumped down from Razor, making his way behind a boulder to pick up his son's rifle.
"Mr. McCain!"
The rancher turned around to see two figures riding towards him. Jenny brought her horse to an abrupt stop, jumping down before running up to Lucas.
"Jenny, what happened?!"
"Willie and Dirk; my aunt hired them to find me!"
"To find you?"
"Mark came out to warn me, but Willie shot him before Dirk could stop him! Dirk's holding up in a cabin a few miles north of here with Mark!"
"Where's Willie?"
As Lucas mounted up, he heard the other rider answer, "In my jail back at Pine Valley. The little lady here gave him quite the run for his money."
"Jenny, do you remember how to get back to that cabin?"
She nodded. "Follow me, I'll-"
As a single gunshot echoed across the land, Lucas jumped down from his horse, pulling Jenny to the ground. "Get back behind that rock!"
Lucas stood as a shield in front of Jenny until she had reached the opposite side of the boulder. He peeked out from behind the rock, then turned to the sheriff. "See anything?"
"No, I… wait, I've got eyes on him! About twenty yards up, on that ridge."
Again, Lucas looked around the boulder to see Dirk taking aim.
"Jansen, where's my son?!"
"Send the girl out, then we'll talk about it!"
"You know I'm not doing that!"
"He's in a bad way, McCain! I did what I could, but he isn't gonna last much longer without a doctor!"
"What'd you do to him?!"
"I didn't touch him; that wet-nosed kid you've all been looking for is the one who plugged him. As soon as I have the girl, I'll get out of your hair and you can get him to a doctor!"
"You're not leaving here with either one of them!"
A shower of bullets forced Lucas back behind the boulder. He turned to the sheriff, panic filling his being when he realized Jenny was nowhere in sight.
"Where is she?!"
"She was just-"
"I'm here, you can have me! Just let Mark go!"
Lucas ran around the boulder to see Jenny starting up the incline.
"Jenny, get back here!"
"McCain, walk away before I stick a bullet in both of you!"
"JENNY!"
"It's me he wants; Mark has nothing to do with this!"
"If Mark was here, he'd tell you to walk away!"
"HE'S NOT! And that's MY fault! I'm not going to let someone else die because of me!"
"You better listen to her!"
"Jenny-"
Before Lucas could finish, another gunshot rang out; Jenny moving out of the way as Dirk tumbled down the incline. The rancher looked up to see the sheriff holstering his revolver, running to meet Jansen as he settled at the bottom of the hill. Lucas hurried towards Jenny, grabbing her arm and pulling her back.
"What were you thinking?!"
"I was thinking about Mark!"
"Mr. McCain, he's still alive," the sheriff called. "I can't just leave him here while we look for that cabin and he'd only slow us down if we brought him along."
"Take him back to Pine Valley- I don't want him anywhere near my son."
"Wire when you find him. We'll send a search party out if we don't hear anything by morning."
As the sheriff tended to Jansen, Lucas and Jenny mounted up. They rode in silence, both fearing what they would find when they arrived.
"…Jenny, are you sure this is the way?" he finally asked.
"…We rode for a long time, but I could've sworn… there, up there!"
The rancher followed her finger to see an old, run-down shack in the distance. He dug his heels into Razor's flanks, jumping down several feet out from the building.
"Mark?!"
The father's heart sank as he entered the empty room, his eyes moving from one pool of blood to another.
"…Mr. McCain?"
Lucas turned around, shaking his head as he walked back outside. "He's not here. Is there anywhere else they might have moved him?"
"I… I don't know; he was here when Willie took me into town. I don't… understand…"
The rancher strode across the yard and knelt down, touching the damp earth to realize he was looking at a trail of blood. "…Ride back to the creek and wait for Doc. I'll meet you back here when I find him."
Lucas didn't wait for an answer. He grabbed Razor's reins and mounted up, setting his jaw as he forced himself to take in his next breath.
Time seemed to stand still as he rode, praying- pleading for his son's life. Intertwined with BlueBoy's hoofprints, Lucas still saw occasional drops of blood, causing his already narrow airway to close even more. Mark was out there, Mark was alive. The father refused to believe anything else. Mark had to be alive.
BlueBoy's trail finally came to a lone bur oak tree before veering back towards the pass. He stepped down from Razor, first seeing the blood and signs of his son struggling, then the pieces of rope that had been thrown aside. A second trail led in the opposite direction of BlueBoy's tracks. Its pattern indicated that Mark had drug himself away from the tree, leaving more blood behind the farther he crawled.
Giving into his body's demands, Mark collapsed to the ground, liquid spewing from his mouth. Pain radiated through the young man's abdomen as his muscles contracted, working to void his stomach of its contents. He gasped, choking as another wave of vomit forced its way up his esophagus.
Fear gripped Mark as he heard a distant voice call his name.
He wouldn't go back.
He wouldn't be used as a pawn.
Tears of pain, exhaustion, and pure terror ran down his cheeks as the youth extended his arm, digging his fingers into the dirt and dragging himself forward.
"MARK!"
He reached forward a second time, screaming in pain as he pulled himself across the ground. Vomit again rising in his throat, Mark forced himself to gain another foot of distance before he lost control of the contents in his mouth.
Fight.
He had to fight.
Liquid still spurting from his mouth, he reached forward one last time, a firm hand preventing him from going any farther.
"N-No…" Mark collapsed to the ground, weakly resisting the man attempting to turn him over. "Please… n-no…"
The voice that answered Mark wasn't what he was expecting. It held gentleness and worry… it held tears.
"…You're safe, Son," it assured; tight, yet wavering. "…You don't need to run anymore."
Feeling a hand pressing against his cheek, Mark slowly opened his eyes. He stared at the figure, waiting for it to come into focus before finally recognizing the blue eyes staring back at him.
He didn't have to fight anymore.
Panic coursed through Lucas's veins as his son fell limp in his arms.
"Mark! MARK!"
He shook the young man by his shoulders, vainly attempting to bring him around. Lucas lifted his son from the ground, his long legs quickly carrying them back to Razor. As they rode, Lucas looked back and forth between the terrain and his son, worry consuming him as the blood stains on Mark's shirt continued to grow. Mark couldn't die. His heart pounded against the wall of his chest as he urged Razor to go faster. Mark had to survive.
Finally, the old shack came into view, Doc Burrage waiting outside. He met Lucas as his horse came to a stop, helping steady Mark as the father dismounted.
"Bring him in, I want to look him over before we go anywhere. I sent Jennifer ahead to get my office ready."
Lucas carried his son inside the cabin and laid him on the table at Doc's instruction. His hands gripped the wooden edge as he watched, noticing how pale Mark looked in contrast to the blood covering his abdomen.
"…Doc, he was vomiting when I found him; there was blood in it."
Burrage merely nodded, reaching into his bag as he continued to work. The doctor did what he could to slow the bleeding before telling Lucas to carry his son out to the wagon.
"I'll sit in the back to watch him. As much as we want to hurry, don't drive too fast… he doesn't need any more jostling."
The time it took to get back to town was agonizing for Lucas. Over and over again, he saw Mark collapsing to the ground, screaming in pain as he tried to get away. The blood, the fear in his son's face; tears welled in the father's eyes as he again slapped the reins.
Upon arriving in town, Lucas carried his still unconscious son inside the doctor's office while Burrage asked Jenny to get Doc Todd.
"…Isn't he a veterinarian?"
"Hurry, Jennifer!"
The young woman ran from the office, Doc turning to Lucas. "…I know the last thing you want to do right now is walk out the door. But it's what's best for him. …Please, Luke… wait at the jail."
There was devastation in the father's eyes as he looked at his son one last time, slowly nodding before tearing himself from Mark's side. He walked across the office, stopping at the door.
"…He can't die, Doc. He can't…"
"I'll do everything I can."
Lucas's shoulders slumped forwards as he made his way to the jailhouse, sinking into the chair at the marshal's desk. He buried his head in his hands, tears falling down his cheeks as he heard the office door open.
"…I understand if you don't want me here… but I thought… maybe…"
The rancher looked up, shaking his head. "…Come in, Micah."
He closed the door behind him, crossing the room to sit on the edge of the desk. "…How bad is it?"
"…I think he's dying… and I don't know if Doc can save him."
"What did Doc say?"
"…That he'll do everything he can. …When I found him… Micah… it wasn't just the bullet wound. He was vomiting blood. …I don't think he had a grasp on his surroundings… he didn't recognize me… kept fighting me, and then… then he passed out. …He hasn't so much as moaned since."
"…Could be a good thing… could be giving him a way to rest."
"…Or he could be shutting down."
"Lucas!" Both men looked up to see Sweeney tearing into the office. "It's Henry; he's got a shotgun and he's threatening to kill Jim Patterson!"
Nothing inside of the father wanted to move. All he cared about was seeing his son alive again. And yet he found himself reaching for his rifle, following Sweeney across the street.
"The next man that steps between us is going to get a bullet in his chest!"
"HENRY!" Lucas pushed open the swinging doors, walking through the parting crowd. "Put the gun down, Henry."
"I'm gonna kill him! He killed my boy! I'm gonna make him pay!"
The rancher looked from one man to the other, his brow furrowing in confusion.
"Luke, he- he's crazy! You know me! You all know me!"
"And I know that gun," Henry snapped back, gesturing to the man's holster. "That gun was in the last crate I loaded onto the wagon Jeffrey took to Willow Springs!"
"There's gotta be half a dozen men in this town who carry a gun like this!"
"Not with twelve notches on the handle! Not with a brand new cylinder! I have a telegram from Willow Springs detailing the repair!"
"Luke, aren't you going to do something?!"
"…Where'd you get the gun, Jim?"
"The gun? I… I bought it, last weekend! If it's the same one, the killer must've sold it to the gunsmith in Pine Valley!"
"Liar!"
"Easy, Henry… every man has a right to a defense." Lucas took another step forward, pushing the barrel of the shotgun down as he twirled his rifle to cock it. "When?"
"Wh…when?" Patterson gulped.
"When did you buy the gun?"
"Saturday… Saturday afternoon!"
"You sure about that?" Micah questioned. "I seem to remember breaking up a fight between you and Courtland about two o'clock Saturday afternoon. It's a three hour ride into Pine Valley, and they close everything up early on Saturdays."
"I… I meant Friday; I finished at Jackford's and rode into Pine Valley!"
"What time?" Lucas asked.
"T-Time?"
"What time did you buy the gun? Four o'clock? Five? Had to be before six; that's when their gun shop closes up."
"Right before they closed- just before six!"
"You're sure about that?"
"He almost didn't let me in!"
"…Six o'clock?"
"I swear!"
"Henry, what time did Jeffrey leave?"
"Two-thirty!"
"Micah, how far out of town did they find him?"
"Two hours."
"…Jim, if that gun is the same one, it would have been stolen about four-thirty. And it would have taken the killer five hours to get to Pine Valley after that. So how is it that you bought the gun at six?"
"It… it must not be the same one!"
"Then you'll have no problem letting the owner confirm that."
The man looked around the room, swallowing hard as his hand hovered over his holster.
"Give it up, Patterson. You try anything, you're not walking out of this room alive."
After locking their prisoner in a cell, Lucas and Micah returned to the front office. The rancher reached into his pocket and pulled out the marshal's badge, then tossed it to his friend.
"Since you're not suspected of murder any more, I think I'll let you have your job back."
"…Lucas… what I did to Mark…"
"I know. But North Fork still needs her marshal. …When Mark's better, we'll talk." He started towards the door, Micah's voice stopping him.
"Where are you going?"
"I need to send a few wires. I'll be back later."
"Let me-"
"…I need something to do besides worry."
Lucas walked over to the telegraph office, greeting the clerk as he entered.
"Amos."
"Lucas… glad you're back… how's Mark?"
"…Doc's still working on him. I need you to send two telegrams. First one to the sheriff in Pine Valley; let him know we found Mark and that someone will be by in the next few days to pick up Willie and Dirk."
"…Willie?"
Lucas nodded, not providing any more details.
"…And the second wire?"
"Marshal Chambers in Willow Springs. Tell him we arrested Jim Patterson for the murder of Jeffrey Waller and that the head of the town council reinstated Marshal Torrence." Seeing the clerk's expression, Lucas shook his head. "I'd rather him not know it was me."
"Will do. …I'll be praying for Mark."
"Thanks, Amos."
The rancher stepped out onto the boardwalk and started back towards the jail, stopping as he caught sight of Jenny on the hotel balcony. He briefly hesitated, looking to Doc's office before making his way to the Mallory House.