Thanks for your reviews - thanks to my beta - thanks for stickin´ around! Short one this time...
„Alright, come on."
Barney stepped aside letting Letty pass.
„So these are Gunnar, Yin Yang and Hale Ceasar", he said, calling the guy´s name in the order they had found themselves a seat in the living room. „The crabby guy over there is Christmas. This", he said, pointing at Amber, "is Amberley Davis. And this...", - he pointed at Letty - ,"is Letty."
„My little helper", Amber added, blinking at Letty who made a face.
Gunnar nudged Yang at the other end of the living room.
„See? Everyone´s got one! Only that she´s a damn lot prettier than you are!"
There was a pause.
„I talked to Tool", Barney told them. „He talked to our client and he´ll keep his eyes and ears open. The moment Trench gets back, we´ll know it."
„What´s takin´ him that damn long anyway?" Ceasar asked.
„Good question", Barney mumbled. „But whatever it is, he´ll hate our guts for getting the better of him again. This time, it will really hurt, I suppose."
„What about Toll Road?" Gunnar asked.
Letty threw Amber a puzzled look, mouthing „What?".
„Damn good question", Barney admitted. „Someone any idea if he´s still seeing this librarian of his?"
The men shrugged.
Christmas chuckled.
„Even if we had an idea, how do you know that she wants to take care of him - or that he wants to her to take care of him ?"
Barney frowned.
„Well, he´s not that badly injured. Let´s leave it to him to decide about that", he suggested.
„Well, fine", Ceasar said. „But it leads only to the next question - what about Billy ? Toll Road put him up after his girlfriend threw him out last month."
„What the hell is wrong with him anyway?" Yang asked.
„He already looked like shit the day we left", Gunnar commented.
„If you want my opinion", Amber threw in, causing all heads to turn towards her. „The boy simply has a case of a bad common cold."
„Say, are you a doctor?" Ceasar asked, causing Barney to give him a dark stare.
Amber smiled.
„Well, I have a PhD. But I´m a vet, actually. And I just housed my twelve year old nephew for over a week with the flu to avoid his baby sister catching it. So believe me, I know what it looks like! Besides, I don´t see a reason why he shouldn´t stay here for some days. Wouldn´t be his first stay around anyway."
The surprised silence following made her frown.
"Excuse me", Lee said. „Would you mind explaining that?"
„Yeah, I´d like to hear that as well", Ceasar chimed in, crossing his thickly muscled arms.
„You guys aren´t alone with that", Letty said, throwing Amberly a puzzled side-glance.
„Amber took care of him after he had gotten out of the hospital after the Albanian job", Barney answered the question for her.
„Albania?" Lee snarled, addressing Barney. „That was about ten months ago!"
„Eleven, actually", Barney corrected his overcorrect friend drily.
„That was during your rehab", Amberly told Letty.
„I should really quit our friendship!" Lee told Barney.
He left the room, not without shouldering his way past Barney on his way out.
„Where you´re going ?" Barney called over his shoulder.
„Taking care of the weapons and BDUs !" Lee answered crabbily. „Before the boy arrives to have a look at the folly!"
„Good idea", Barney commented good-humoredly. „And the boy´s name is Bobby."
„Yeah, screw you!" Lee barked on his way out. „And that makes Billy fit in quite nicely, doesn´t it ?"
„Need a hand?"
„Don´t bother, conman!"
„So, Amberly, I don´t mean to be rude", Gunnar spoke up. „But I have a question the answer to is of interest to all of us here, I guess."
Barney boded ill while Amber smiled that mischievous smile of hers.
„Go ahead", she said, shrugging.
„Are you involved with this gentleman right next to you?" Gunnar asked, pointing at Barney.
„You want to answer that one for me as well?" Amber addressed Barney.
Amber´s smile broadened when he only waved a hand to tell her to go ahead.
„Think so", she answered lightly.
„Gotcha !" Gunnar told Yang, holding out a large hand. „And thanks for being that honest with me", he told Amber.
Yang handed Gunnar some bills.
„I did know that at least", Letty mumbled.
„Well, whatever", Barney said. „Amber agreed to house us for another forty eight hours if necessary. Anyone got a problem with that ?"
„Since when are you hosting farm vacations ?" Letty asked Amber with a grin.
„How are we supposed to get that plane in the air again?" Ceasar asked. „Or are you planning on leaving it to rot out in that field ?"
„There´s a road close by", Barney answered. „Will do."
„A road?" Christmas asked from the hall. „Are you crazy?"
„Christmas, this is the countryside - people are way more relaxed around here than in town."
„You are crazy."
„What are we supposed to do meanwhile ?" Ceasar asked.
Barney shrugged.
„Taking care of the equipment will have to wait", he decided. „Get some sleep."
„You know", Letty said suddenly, "whatever you people are up to - I need some breakfast! If anyone´s interested - just let me know!"
She turned to Amber.
„You don´t mind, do you ?"
Amber grinned.
„Go ahead!"
„You bastard told me that you went fishing!" Christmas accused Barney.
Christmas had eventually decided to accept Barney´s offer to help him transferring their stuff over to the plane. Now they were busy storing it.
„I went fishing!"
„Yeah, just not for perch, huh ?"
„Oh, come on!"
„And she´s the friend you talked into taking care of Billy back then! I don´t believe it! Wouldn´t be surprised if you told her that he´s your lost son!"
„What? I had told her about him and she suggested it! Who..."
„Yeah, cut it, I´ll never again believe a damn word you say! And the Kid, he´s been makin´ common cause with you - that´s a real disappointment!"
„He didn´t know."
„Oh you tell me! One needs to be damn blind not to see what´s going on between you and her! So tell me, what kind of skeletons does she have in her closet to end up with a guy like you ?"
„Damn, get over it!" Barney told him.
„Yeah, eventually!" Christmas snapped. „But until then, you´ll have to answer some questions ! To kind of, well, foster my trust, you know!"
„Well, what do you want to know ?"
„Why she´s with you of all people, for starters! Even you may have noticed that she´s not exactly homely."
„Careful now", Barney cautioned. „And she´s widowed."
„And you comforted her ?"
Barney finally grinned, shaking his head.
„No. She was married to some Australian rodeo rider. She returned here after his death. The guy cheated on her, by the way."
Lee decided to ignore the reference to his own girlfriend.
„How did he die ?"
Barney chuckled.
„Obviously in a house fire."
„What´s so damn funny about that ? No pleasant way to die."
Barney shrugged.
„It was a cathouse."
„You´re not serious", Lee said.
Barney grinned, remembering asking Amber the same when she had told him the story.
„She had been married before. The guy made her end up in hospital for two weeks before she decided to leave him."
Lee grunted, only to find himself being thrown a side-glance by Barney.
„So, you´re not beating her up and probably not cheating on her and that´s it ?"
„God, you´re a pain in the ass, do you know that ?!"
Barney scanned through the plane for any weaponry he might have overseen before.
„What is it with this boy, what´s his name again ?" Lee asked.
„Bobby. He´s the son of her sister. She remarried recently and they also have this baby girl now."
„So he´s not getting along with his new dad ?"
Barney grimaced.
„Well, they usually get along. I guess the guy´s alright, but he´s sometimes a little quick with punishment."
„Do I hear an expert talking ?"
„Well, Bobby´s alright! Just a little hotheaded. A while ago, he was sent home from school for punching another boy right in the face."
„Well, doesn´t exactly speak for his good manners, does ist ?"
„Well, his stepfather made quite a fuzz and locked the boy up in his room. Later that day, some friend of Bobby´s mother came along. She said that she was sorry that he had been sent home, but that she was quite glad at the same time that he had kept that boy from pushing around her daughter any longer. Gave his stepfather a hard time trying to decide if to burst of pride or to die of shame for shouting the boy down before."
„Why hadn´t he told anyone ?"
„Well, obviously nobody allowed him to say anything. And..."
„Tell me something else", Lee interrupted. „How the hell do you know all that ?"
Barney scratched the back of his neck for a moment.
„Well, ´cause Amber gave me a hard time afterwards for showing him how to do a proper right hook."
„Wow, you really have it! She left you alone with the boy for five minutes and you taught him how to knock out people?"
„Boy´s a natural!" Barney defended himself. „What do you want him to do ? Wrestle ? He´ll end up like Toll Road!"
„I take it she knows what we´re doing", Lee returned to their former topic.
„Yeah."
Barney nodded.
„Otherwise it would have been hard to explain to her what kind of accident Billy had had back then, wouldn´t it ?" he added.
„I take it the boy doesn´t", Lee went on.
„You´re right." Barney closed the last storage compartment, looking contentedly around for a moment before he scowled at Lee.
„And I promise to shoot the first of you guys to open his big mouth."
„Honestly this time, Barney, how long has this been going on ?"
Barney grinned and refused an answer while Christmas still couldn´t get used to the thought that Barney of all people had obviously managed to find himself kind of a family on the QT without any of his friends even suspecting a damn thing.