Danielle took one last look at her charge and took off down the hill. She was careful to stay to the side of the trail where she could walk on the road without making any noise but still be hard to spot. When she neared the house she scouted the perimeter. Artie was right there didn't seem to be any guards posted. She worked her way around the house and found the horses. She untied them and shooed all but three of them away.

These she held tightly to their reins and pulled them with her toward the rear of the house. There she found her prize. A window with bars on it! Looking around and seeing no one she quietly approached the window and tapped on it. Inside, she heard a rustling sound and then Jim's face appeared at the window.

"Danielle?" he questioned.

"Yes, it's me," she whispered, "There's no time to explain. Artemus told me to give you this…" she handed him the clay, "he seemed to think you'd know what to do with it."

"Indeed I do. Stand back this stuff is quiet but it throws a lot of sparks."

Jim took the proffered clay and broke off small pieces. Handing some to Jeremy, they spread the clay around the top and bottom of each bar with a small piece connecting them. Jeremy produced a match and Jim lit it and held it to the first clay strip. The clay immediately caught and sparks flew like sparklers on the fourth of July. When the sparks stopped Jim tapped each bar and it dropped into Danielle's waiting hands.

"Okay you guys, you really need to hurry if I'm going to pull this off and give you time to get away!" Artie said weaving in his saddle.

When all the bars had been removed, Jim climbed through the window and dropped noiselessly to the ground followed quickly by Jeremy. They grabbed the reins Danielle offered them and began to pull the horses toward the front of the house, not quite sure of their escape route. Jim halted them when he saw a lone figure on a horse approaching.

"What the hell does he think he's doing?" Jim whispered angrily.

"What's going on?" Jeremy asked.

"Artie…that's what. The dang fool is riding right up to the house!"

"What?" Danielle asked shocked, "He'll get himself killed!"

"Knowing Artie, he has a plan. While he's distracting them let's get these horses into the brush," Jim quickly caught onto his partner's hair brained scheme.

"Frying pan, James?" Jeremy asked, to which Jim replied.

"Fire, if this doesn't work."

Artie slid off his horse and it took all the restraint Danielle had not to rush to his aid. He could barely walk and he had to stop to vomit on the way to the door. When he reached the door he rumpled his hair and undid his tie before knocking on the door. When the door opened, Artie put on his best drunken man act to date. The fact that the drunken sway was real only helped his make his performance all the more believable.

"Goo…good evening kind sir," Artie slurred his words, "can you…you tell Anna tha…that her beau is…is here…to see her?" He almost swayed into the man at the door.

"There is no one here by the name of Anna. You have the wrong house. Why don't you go sleep it off somewhere," the man was about to close the door when Artie stuck his foot in it.

"N…now see here…Anna told me…she told me yesterday…she did…that she lived here at…Arsenal Ro…road and Sus…Susque…Susquehanna. Now is that not this house?" Artie swayed again giving the perfect impression that he was indeed quite inebriated.

Jim pulled them away from his partner's act. He held a finger up to his lips to stall Danielle's questions and led them into the bushes. They walked the horses some distance from the house before climbing onto them and riding for the top of the hill. Jim looked back down to see if Artie was on his way.

"Oh brother, Artie, you don't have to play the town drunk to the hilt," Jim smiled.

"Town drunk?" Danielle asked.

"Yeah, Artie bought us some time by pretending to be drunk. Something he seems to be quite good at," Jim shook his head and looked back down the hill as they pulled up just off the road so they wouldn't be seen by those at the house.

"Mister, you have the wrong house. In fact you are about three miles that way…" the man pointed back up the hill, "away from where you want to be," he said irritated.

"What? Are you sure?" Artie slurred.

"I'm positive now beat it!" The man roughly shoved Artie off the porch, causing him to fall against his horse nearly making him faint.

"I'm go…gonna go have shome wordsh with Anna," Artie said as he mounted his horse and pulled the reins as the man went back inside and slammed the door.

He turned the horse and walked him up the trail toward where he hoped Jim, Jeremy and Danielle would be waiting for him. He resisted the urge to retch again and kept the horse headed up the hill. He closed his eyes and hoped the horse knew where he was going. When he crested the hill his horse paused. Artie opened his eyes to see what had made him stop. Standing before him was Jim, Jeremy and Danielle all mounted and waiting for him.

"I thought I told you to tell Jim to head back to the train without me," Artie glared at Danielle.

"I did, but it seems you do not have the market cornered on stubborn, Artemus," she glared back.

They heard shouts from the house below. The disappearance of Jim and Jeremy had been discovered. Jim suggested they ride hard and fast for the train and the waiting Army soldiers. Artie refused to go with them.

"Jim I can barely sit on this horse let alone ride hard. You go on ahead…ride through the brush there's a small trail over that way…you should be able to ride without too much noise."

"Artie…" Jim began only to have his partner cut him off.

"I'll be ok, Jim. They'll be expecting to see me on this road anyway. I'll throw em off your trail then join you," Artie shooed them away as he plodded onward singing drunkenly.

"Jim, is he always like this?" Danielle whispered as they made their way down the trail.

"No, sometimes he's worse," Jim chuckled, inwardly worried about his partner.

Artie slowed his steed as the men drew near and he turned in his saddle to look at them. It took all his strength not to fall out of the saddle. He watched as they drew near and when they stopped the man he had spoken to at the house pulled up next to him.

"Hey, you see two men come riding by this way in the past few minutes?"

"I shore did…they was headed…thataway…" Artie said as he pointed toward town.

"Said they was riding hard and fast ta git ta some kinda office."

"Thanks, here buy yourself a bottle," the man tossed him a coin which Artie miraculously caught. He made a show of biting it then stuck it in his pocket.

"Thank ya, mister!" he called after them, grinning as they rode out of sight.

Artie turned his steed and headed back to the trail he had sent Jim and the others down. He figured he should catch up to them shortly. He had gone about half a mile down the trail when a figure emerged from the shadows. With his arm in the sling Artie couldn't draw his gun since he had to use his good hand to hold the reins.

"That's a pretty rotten trick, James," he said to the figure.

"That was a pretty stupid stunt, Artemus," Jim smiled at him.

"Point taken. I just did what I had to do."

"You do know that we are in BIG trouble when we get back," Jim stated pulling up along side his friend.

"You don't know the half of it, Jim. Wait'll the Colonel finds out we sent his Godchild into a den of rattlesnakes to get you and Jeremy out all by herself!"

"We, Artie?"

"Yeah, we…you don't think I'm taking the rap for this all by myself do you?"

Jim just laughed and leaned over and took the reins from Artie. At his questioning look Jim simply told him Danielle's orders and pulled his partner along. They met up with Danielle and Jeremy and she insisted they stop so she could examine Artie.

"There really isn't time, Danielle. If they figure out what we did they'll be on us like white on rice," Artie tried to push her away.

"Then we'll find something to fight with. I am examining you, Artemus, whether you like it or not." Danielle removed a stethoscope from her bag and put the ear tips in her ears and the diaphragm on his chest.

"You're heart is racing. This is not good and your lungs sound congested," she looked at Jim, "hand me Artemus' canteen," Jim unhooked it from the saddle and held it out to her.

She took it and dumped a packet of powder into it and shook it. She held it up to Artemus' mouth and helped him drink it. Danielle steadied him when he faltered.

"We need to get him back to the train at once."

"Then what are we standing around here talking for? Let's go!" Artie said as he pushed her away and kicked his heels into the sides of the horse leaving the others to stare after him. They followed letting him set the pace.

WWWWWWWWWW

"Mr. West, I could have sworn I had given you specific instructions regarding Danielle. Yet the minute my back is turned you allow her to go off and pull a damn fool stunt like this!" Richmond shouted at Jim, who remained standing at attention.

"Sir, with all due respect, I did not allow her to pull anything. She just showed up."

"With Artemus in tow…another damn fool stunt," Richmond was shouting now.

"No, sir, Artie went to the front of the house and staged a diversion so we could get away," Jim winced as soon as he had said that knowing it was the most wrong thing he could have said at that moment.

"He WHAT?!? The man almost died, he should be in a hospital and you stand here and tell me that he just rode up to the house and…"

Danielle was in Artie's room checking his fever and his vital signs when the shouting began. She shook her head and marveled at how much the agents had to put up with from the grouchy Colonel. When the shouting had reached near earthquake proportions Artie began to toss and turn. She decided there was only one way to calm her Godfather down so her patient could get the sleep he so desperately needed and she was just the one to do it. Danielle put a cool cloth on Artie's forehead and marched down the hall to the parlor car.

She threw the door open, startling the men, who turned to stare at her. Don't stop now, Danielle, just remember you're the boss here, she told herself as she put on her most stern glare.

"Colonel Richmond! I have a very sick man in that room down there and YOU are NOT helping him any with your shouting! Artemus needs rest and plenty of it. I intend to see that he gets it. You men can take your shouting elsewhere or I'll give you something to shout about!" She scolded them sternly.

"Jim, you and Jeremy probably have business elsewhere am I right?" Danielle hoped to give them a graceful way out of their predicament. Jim merely looked at the Colonel and nodded.

"Fine then, you go about your business finding these cutthroats who started all this boloney in the first place. And YOU…" she tapped the Colonel in the chest with her finger, "you can stay and do your paperwork or whatever it is you need to do so long as you do it quietly," inwardly she was shaking like a leaf.

"I know you have issues with these men and I don't blame you. When Artemus wakes up believe you me, he will face my wrath. But for now I want it so quiet in here you can hear a flea breathe. Do I make myself clear?" Danielle regarded them angrily.

"Yes, ma'am!" Jim and Jeremy threw her a mock salute as they quickly took their leave and she turned her attention back to Richmond.

"That goes for you too, Colonel. Or do I have to tell my uncle that you were derelict in your duties toward an ailing agent?"

"I do have some paperwork I need to get to and some telegrams to send," Richmond spoke softly and as Danielle turned to leave he stopped her.

"Artemus will be okay, won't he?" Richmond asked.

"Yes, he will in time. But this time he will stay put in that bed until I say he is ready to get out of it if I have to tie him to it!" Danielle turned and briskly walked out of the room and back to her patient.