Ezra checked his voicemail for about the 10th time that day before JD allowed his curiosity to get the better of him.
"Who are you expecting a call from?"
"Just hoping to have a response for some of the people I contacted concerning mother's passing."
"Yeah – guess she's got a lot of ex's to notify. Damn, that didn't come out right."
"Don't concern yourself JD – you speak the truth. And they are not the ones I attempted to contact. Good Lord, it could take me weeks just to track them all down."
"So, who did you call – if it OK to ask?"
Ezra looked up and noticed Chris and Vin had quietly joined them, not taking part in the discussion, but watching. He sighed quietly and reminded himself he no longer needed to keep secrets from these men.
"Family. Mother's family. Or at least those whose whereabouts I am still familiar with. There is an aunt in Georgia who I did speak with. She said she would spread the word, although from her tone, I do not expect the news will take a high priority. Great-Aunt Clara was of the more legitimate side of the family, being the sister to my maternal Grandmother. She was not the most interesting or compelling of the relatives I stayed with over the years."
"Why does your use of the word 'interesting' fill me with dread?" Chris asked with a friendly smirk.
"Because sir, I seriously doubt you would approve of the child rearing techniques of most of my relations. They had a unique perspective on things."
"OK, that just adds curiosity to the dread. Care to share any details?"
"Well let's see." Vin waved the others into the room as Ezra settled back in his seat. Amid his many other talents, Ezra could weave a story better than anyone he'd ever met. It was a part of what made him such a good undercover operative, and an extremely entertaining friend. And sharing his past was not a daily occurrence, so Vin wanted to be sure no one missed the moment.
"You'll have to forgive me if it takes a moment to scan through my memory for tales that would neither raise your ire nor lower your opinion of my relations. My mother is the product of a long line of grifters and charlatans herself. She claimed the family had been living life of the edge of legality for as far back as anyone can ascertain. Some maintained we could likely trace our roots back to the apple provider in the Garden of Eden. I have often fancied myself to the descendant of some Mississippi River boat gambler, or a poker professional in the Old West. Someone who may have sat across the table from the likes of Billy the Kid or Doc Holliday, plying his trade and cheating his way to wealth and infamy."
"Ever occur to you that you might be the descendant of an honest man – maybe even a lawman who tracked down the likes of Billy the Kid or other bad guys?"
"Given the family legacy, I cannot honestly say that it seemed like a reasonable possibility JD. However, if perchance he fell into the company of the right men, one never knows how someone's life might be turned around."
"No," Josiah agreed quietly. "You just never know."
Ezra cleared away the lump forming in his throat. "Now, where were we. Oh, we can start with cousin Arthur. And I should clarify most of these people are actually somewhat removed from my immediate family tree. Mother had only one sibling, at least that was acknowledged by the family. That would be her sister Alice. Barely a year younger and quite clearly from the same stock, but beyond her appearance there were no similarities in the two women." He paused to glance at JD. "That is one of the phone calls that I am expecting. I never knew her well, but in our few encounters in my much younger days, I always found her to be a gracious woman."
"Where is she Ezra?"
"Last I heard, a convent near New Orleans. Yes, my mother's sister is a nun." He enjoyed the dumbfounded looks.
Josiah was the first to find his voice. "Thought you said you were Southern Baptist."
"I was whatever was needed at any given time. However, I believe Aunt Alice converted to the Church to fulfill what she saw has her vocation. I told you gentlemen, mine is a unique clan."
They all settled in and enjoyed the tales told over the next hour. Chris hoped there was exaggeration in some of the stories, but feared there was not. It was clear even by the selected and edited escapades that Ezra had had anything but a normal childhood. JD was fascinated by it all.
"You should write all this stuff down. You'd have a best seller – probably 4 or 5 of them. I know I'd read them all, even though you've already told me."
"A tempting thought JD, and a career option I shall hold in reserve for the moment." He looked to his audience again.
"I know you all have a low opinion of mother for leaving me in the hands of others as often as she did, but you can see how those experiences benefited me in the long run, and certainly offered a grounding for my chose profession. I had, for the most part the childhood others dream of. How many children do you know who were actually permitted to join the carnival? To travel across this land? And while I never encountered the pirates of Treasure Island or mysteries of Sherlock Holmes, I nevertheless enjoyed adventures to rival Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn. It may not have been the ideal childhood, but is was most gratifying."
"Got to hand it to you Ezra. You have a real gift for coming across a stable full of manure and digging around to find the pony."
"I am going to assume that is intended as a compliment Buck, and will accept it as such."
"Your whole family can't have been grifters and the like Ezra. You said there was a legitimate side as well. Ever stay with any of them?"
"Sadly Nathan, we did have our share of dull, traditional sorts as well. In the entirety of the time I was with her, Great-aunt Clara never cracked a smile in my presence. I don't know whether that was a reflection of her character, or mine." He grinned. "I could be a bothersome child at times."
"Really? I find that hard to imagine." Ezra decided once again that Chris was extremely irritating when he was being sarcastic.
"I can understand your confusion. Most of the time I was a delight to be around, and was lovingly welcomed into every home." This time the smile did not seem as sincere, and Chris was sure he saw something else in those jade eyes for just a moment. He abandoned the tone he'd been teasing Ezra with.
"Not all sunshine and roses was it."
"Most of it was Chris, and that is all a child can expect. Especially a child who is intruding on the normal affairs of a family."
"So what your trying so hard not to say is that when you weren't part of a con or game someone was running, you weren't exactly welcome at the table."
He debated bluffing his way through once again, but Ezra was determined to put that aspect of his relationship with the others behind him. "No, I was not exactly the family member most cherished. An additional person to support, even a child, was not always appreciated by the reprobates in the family, unless of course I my services were required for part of a sting. Those who strayed from the family traditions and became 'honest and upright' citizens were often no more tolerant of me than were the ne'er-do-wells. Many of them were firm believers in the "to spare the rod is to spoil the child" approach to child rearing, and since clearly I had inherited the bad genes, anything that could be seen as an effort to help me find the proper path was seen as perfectly acceptable."
"Did Maude know you were being beaten?" Josiah was never one to skirt around the truth.
"I chose at the time to believe she did not, and I see no reason to alter that perspective at this point."
'So yes, she did' they all thought to themselves.
Nathan's voice was hesitant. "Was it bad – I mean, were you hurt bad Ezra?"
Ezra was comforted by the concern in the healer's voice, as if he could now do something to fix the old wounds, and for a moment the emotion allowed him to forget himself, and precisely how astute is audience was. "The injuries healed Nathan. The scars faded over time. The beatings were far from the wor–" he caught himself, but too late.
Buck growled, having a good idea how that sentence was intended to end. There was only one thing worse than a beating for a child. Chris was having the same reaction, as were the others as the light dawned on each. Ezra tried to look away, but found himself mesmerized by their responses. Josiah, the gentle giant, curled his hands into fists and the look on his face showed he had an almost overwhelming desire to use them. If Nathan had been concerned about the beatings this had him disturbed to his soul. He'd seen the effects of abuse on children in his time as an EMT, and imagining a young Ezra in the hospital bed, shocked and traumatized almost brought him to tears.
There was no almost for JD, as his eyes filled with tears he would not allow to fall. He would not let his friend think he was being pitied – there were few things he hated more than pity. The courage JD showed in fighting that response very nearly brought Ezra to the same state.
But it was Vin's reaction that came closest to being his undoing. He simply looked at Ezra, not wavering for a moment in meeting his returning stare. There was no mistaking the distress, the unease that the sharpshooter was feeling at that moment. Nor was there any mistaking the look of affection, support and brotherly love coming from him. The message coming from all of them was clear. You will never be left alone again while I am your friend.
Chris's growl slowly turned into the spoken word again. "Who was it Ezra?"
"No Chris. Not now."
"Ez-"
"Not now Chris. Not today. I do not believe I can deal with anything more on my plate today. Please."
It took several deep breaths but Chris brought himself back under control. "Fine, but we are going to be having another chat again soon."
Ezra merely nodded as he rose. "If you gentlemen don't mind, I feel the need for some fresh air. I think Chaucer could use some exercise." He left, the others fighting down the urge to follow him.
When they saw him ride out several minutes later, they felt it was safe to speak again.
"Tell me how we never knew any of this. How could we not see how damaged he was – is?"
"That's the easy question Buck – 'cause he didn't want us to. Like we've said all along. He is the best at what he does – he's a chameleon. And he hides in plain sight every day."
"But this – this nightmare stuff." JD couldn't understand it.
"The worse a memory is, the deeper it can get buried." The profiler in Josiah was coming to the surface. "He learned to cope by not accepting that there was really anything wrong with what happened. Any of what happened. You heard him. Being shuffled to family or even strangers was an adventure, it was a game. A childhood fantasy come true. And when it was bad – well then he probably deserved it. He was – what did he call it? – 'bothersome'. And when it was really bad. I'd guess the bastards who did that – who assaulted him, told him it was the only love he was worthy of. Would explain why he doesn't understand to this day why anyone would think otherwise."
Buck was pacing, speed picking up as he got angrier by the second. Chris reached out to grab his arm. "No Buck, you are not allowed to find them and kill them. Or hurt them. Putting the fear of God into them, that we can talk about. But we don't do anything behind his back. His defenses are down now, and he hates that he let himself slip up that much. He needs to know he can trust us with what he just shared. He needs to know his interests come first, before our desire to rip whoever did this limb from perverted limb. Understood." Buck grudgingly nodded. Chris scanned the room. "Everybody on board with this?" There were sad and very reluctant nods from all.
"OK – we give him about half an hour, then we all mount up for a nice long ride."
"Excellent idea Chris." Josiah nodded. "Good for the soul."
M7-M7-M7-M7-M7-M7-M7
TBC