azombiewrites (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
azombiewrites) wrote2009-04-25 10:03 pm
azombiewrites) wrote2009-04-25 10:03 pm
The Magnificent Seven fic - 'Trust' - 3/5
Title: Trust
First story in 'The Continuing Ezra Standish Saga'
Rating: PG
Warnings: Bad writing ahead!
Fandom: The Magnificent Seven
Genre: Hurt/Comfort
Summary: Marshal Hanley arrives in Four Corners, a man from Ezra's past but is he friend or foe.
Main Characters: Ezra Standish and the rest of the seven
Disclaimers: The guys are owned by CBS, MGM, Trilogy Entertainment Group, and The Mirisch Corp.
Beta: Not betaed – written in the early days when I didn’t know what the words grammar and edit meant. *shamed*
Notes: First story in the ‘Continuing Ezra Standish Saga’.
Spoilers: None.
Word Count: 15,416
Part Three
JD returned a couple of hours later just when it had started to become dark with the meals that the Marshall had requested. Ezra looked a lot worse to him. He face had reddened a little and there was a slight sheen of sweat on his face. JD saw Hanley looking at him and this caused him to think that something was not right. Ezra should be looking better not worse and because of this, JD decided to keep the thought to himself. He will have to talk to the guys about this. If they would listen, that is. Just then, Mary entered hoping to talk to Ezra.
"Mrs Travis." JD greeted her. He saw the look of concern on her face for Ezra.
"Why does he look so ill?" she asked.
"He got shot," said Hanley.
"And you are?" enquired Mary.
"This is Marshall Hanley; he said he had to defend himself when he arrested Ezra. He shot him. But the Marshall cleaned his wound so he should be fine." JD answered for him.
"JD you forgot to tell her what your friend Chris did to him."
Mary looked back at JD the anger showing on her face. "And what was that?"
JD could not look her in the eye so instead he looked at the still form of Ezra. Scared that something was wrong with him.
"He attacked Ezra when he found out why the Marshall had arrested him."
"Kicked him so hard he probably broke some ribs. I bandaged them up though." Hanley added the last part to cover up his tracks.
"Really." she was going to have to speak to Mr Larabee about that in the morning.
"Mrs Travis, why don't we leave Ezra to get his rest and come back tomorrow? I'll walk you to your room." JD guided her out of the office taking one quick glance at Ezra before they left.
He really did not look good.
"JD what's going on?" Mary asked.
"I don't know Mrs Travis. Every time I go in there, Ezra is asleep. The only thing I do know is that tomorrow I am going to have to either convince the guys to help Ezra or work out a way to help him by myself."
"You won't have to do it by yourself. I'll come and talk to them with you and if they still refuse then we will work on a plan together."
JD smiled at this. Finally, someone else wanted to help Ezra. He just hoped that tomorrow was not too late.
Hanley continued through the night to inflict suffering on Ezra. It was either physical pain by causing more damage to his wounded side or emotional pain by telling him how much Charlotte had suffered before she died giving him every detail of the pain that he had caused her. Ezra managed to get through most of this torture by thinking of his own ways to make this man pay for what he had done and what he was doing. Hanley eventually gave up though as it had become more difficult to bring Ezra around each time he wanted to have more fun.
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JD decided to check on Ezra before he started to look for everyone else so he and Mrs Travis could talk to them. He did not know how he was going to talk them into helping Ezra. Maybe Mrs Travis could do that part for him. Marshall Hanley was not in the sheriff’s office when he arrived so he was able to stand close to the outer cell and get a better look at Ezra. He was soaked with sweat and moving his head side to side as though in a nightmare. Now JD was really worried.
"What the hell has Hanley been doing?" It was as though he did not want Ezra to get better. Maybe he thought this was better than a hanging. "Well we aren't going to let that happen."
"Ezra?"
"Ezra?" JD called louder this time.
Ezra opened his eyes. They were filled with pain. He turned in the direction of the voice.
"Ah, Mr Dunne what are you doing here?" Ezra croaked.
"I thought I'd come to see how you were doing." JD could see that Ezra had trouble keeping his eyes open. "And I can see that you’re not doing too well at all."
Ezra did not reply.
"Have you had anything to eat or drink since yesterday Ezra?"
JD saw Ezra frown at the question as though he was trying to remember if he had but before he could answer, he turned his head to the side and was asleep again. JD went to the pole for the keys to the cell but found that they were not hanging where they usually were. He tried the desk but found one of the drawers locked. He realised that the Marshall did not want anyone to have a closer look at Ezra so he locked the keys away. JD hurriedly walked out of the building determined to get the others to help him get Ezra away from that man.
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JD saw Mrs Travis waiting for him outside of the saloon. She smiled as he arrived.
"You look like you did not get much sleep last night JD."
JD noticed that she herself looked the same. "He's worse." JD did not know any other way to say it.
"We better talk fast then," said Mary before she entered the saloon.
JD followed her in and saw the rest of the group sitting at a table playing cards. They did not seem to be taking much notice of what they were doing though. This might be easier than he thought.
He walked straight to the table. No one looked up at him. Mrs Travis was standing at his side and he looked sideways at her. She nodded for him to continue.
"Ezra's sick." stated JD
Everyone but Chris looked up. JD thought that he saw some concern in their eyes.
"Nathan could you please come and take a look at him."
Before Nathan could answer, Chris spoke up. "How do you know he's sick? He might be trying to con you into helping him without actually asking for help."
"Mr Larabee." Chris looked up at the sound of Mary's voice. "Mr Standish is sick, I have seen him myself."
"I'm sorry but I don't believe that he is. The man is a murderer; he would do anything to get out of a bad situation."
She found it hard to understand why he was acting like this towards Ezra. She looked at the rest of the group and noticed that Buck, Vin and Josiah were looking slightly guilty over what was happening. Maybe she could convince them to help.
"Gentlemen Mr Standish may not want your help but he does need it and he deserves to have it." Mary's voice softened as she said this, thinking that it may make them feel even guiltier and help him.
"Are you sure that he is sick?" asked Buck.
JD looked at Buck. "Yes." He then looked at Nathan. "Nathan if you won't do it for Ezra would you please do it for me."
Buck could not stand it anymore. He stood up. "Come on Nathan, I'll go with you. And I am not going to take no for an answer. The man may have killed someone but he does not deserve to be treated like this. We are supposed to be his friends."
Nathan looked at Chris as though he was asking his permission to go with JD and Buck.
"Do what you want Nathan but I reckon the man deserves what he gets."
"And is that why you attacked him." Mary didn't hide the disgust from her voice.
Chris just looked at her not knowing why she would show any sort of concern for Ezra.
"Great. We have to hurry. I don't know how long Hanley will be gone for." said JD as he followed the others out of the saloon.
As they entered the jail, Hanley watched from across the street. He knew that his game was up and that he had better find a hiding place and plan his next move. He was going to kill Ezra even if it meant dying himself. He left to get his horse ready.
Josiah got up and walked towards the saloon doors.
"Going too are you Josiah?" snarled Chris.
Josiah looked at him. "I am going to stand here and watch just in case I am needed.
Vin smiled at this. Seems everyone was starting to change sides including himself.
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Nathan and Buck stood in front of the outer cell looking at Ezra. They then turned to look at each other.
"Where's the keys to the cell JD?" asked Buck.
"One of the desk drawers is locked so I think they are in there."
Buck went over to the desk and tried the drawers until he found the one that was locked. He used the butt of his gun to break the drawer open and pulled out the keys. He opened the outer door cell and then the cell itself. He let Nathan go in first and he stood back and hoped for the best. He could tell himself that Ezra was really sick. He was dripping with sweat and he sounded like he was having trouble breathing, he could hear the rattle from his chest each time he let out a breath. He should have listened to JD sooner.
Nathan knelt down beside the bunk. He looked at Ezra's face. Saw the grimaces of pain. He put his hand on Ezra's forehead and felt the heat burning into the skin of his hand. He turned to Buck.
"He's burning with a fever."
"I told you didn't I." JD said not disguising his anger. "But you wouldn't listen to me would you."
Nathan pulled the blanket back and everyone let out a gasp of shock. They saw Ezra's tied hands but what shocked them most was the amount of blood on his jacket, vest and shirt. Nathan left his hands for the time being and pulled aside Ezra's jacket. He then gently unbuttoned his vest and started to lift his shirt. The shirt stuck to the wound and Nathan had to pull harder. He felt a pair of hands grab him. The grip was weak. He looked down into Ezra's pained filled fevered eyes. Ezra's eyes began to focus.
"Nathan what are you doing?" groaned Ezra.
"You're sick Ezra, and you're going to get my help whether you like it or not."
He turned to continue what he was doing not waiting for Ezra to refuse him again. Nathan was able to lift Ezra's shirt away from the wound without causing him to black out. The wound was swollen and red and there was yellow mucus leaking from it.
"The wound is infected," said Nathan grimly. "We have to get him to my room."
JD was pacing back and forth. He was beginning to get very angry. Particularly at Chris Larabee. It was mostly his fault that Ezra had been left here to get so sick instead of helping him.
"No." said Ezra.
Nathan looked at him amazed that the man could still be stubborn when he was near his deathbed. "Ezra why do you have to keep refusing help. You would die if we left you here."
"And you will die if you take me away from here."
Buck came over then with a confused look on his face. He did not understand what Ezra had meant by that.
"What are you saying Ezra?" asked Buck.
Ezra did not seem to acknowledge that Buck had even asked the question.
"Where is Hanley?" he asked.
"I don't know," answered Nathan. "He was gone when we got here. JD made us come."
Ezra smiled at that. "Hanley said that he would kill anyone who helped me." Ezra was finding it harder to talk. He wanted to go back to sleep but he had to warn them of what Hanley was capable of doing.
"Is that why you did not want our help at the stable?" Buck asked. "Because you thought that he would kill us."
Ezra just nodded. He was falling into unconsciousness again. "That's why he killed Charlotte, she tried to help me."
They all looked at each other. The looks on their faces showing the tremendous amount of guilt that they were feeling. Nathan turned back to Ezra, pulled his shirt back down over his wound, and covered him with the blanket.
"Buck, do think you could carry him to my room?" questioned Nathan, knowing what his answer would be. "JD you go on ahead and start boiling some water for me, where going to need it.
Buck came over and gently lifted Ezra into his arms. Ezra groaned.
"Sorry Ezra. I'll try to be more careful." he said this even though he knew that the gambler would not hear him.
He carried him through the doors outside to the street being careful not to cause any part of Ezra's body to touch anything. Nathan followed him outside.
"Do you think were to late Nathan?"
"I don't know yet Buck, but I hope not."
"If Ezra dies Hanley is going to suffer an even worse fate that anyone could imagine," growled Buck.
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"Gentlemen, I think you should come and have a look at this." Josiah called over his shoulder.
"What is it Josiah?" enquired Vin.
"It seems that JD was correct when he said that Ezra was sick."
Vin quickly got up and headed towards the door. Chris sat where he was until he noticed that Mary was looking at him.
"Well?" she asked.
Chris looked back at her for a moment then got up and followed Vin. He was not doing this for Ezra. Chris did not want Mary angry with him. The last thing he wanted was to be on her wrong side.
Vin and Chris looked at Josiah who just nodded in the direction of Nathan's room. They saw Buck carrying a figure wrapped in a blanket. They knew it was Ezra. He was hanging limp in Buck's arms with his head lying against his right shoulder. Nathan was following. Josiah and Vin did not hesitate as they ran towards them. As they got closer, they could see how bad a condition Ezra was in. Their stomachs were tied in knots.
Chris did not know what to think, he was suddenly confused about what was going on. He felt as though he was being pulled in two different directions. He remembered the times that he thought Ezra was a friend and then to the fact that Ezra had admitted to murdering a woman. He nearly turned back to go into the saloon when he heard Mary's voice again.
"At least go and see what is happening Chris, please."
"As long as you understand Mary that I am not going to help him."
Mary nodded thinking that if she argued with him now that he would change his mind and go back inside. Together they walked to Nathan's room. Mary to see what she could do to help and Chris only because Mary had wanted him to.
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JD had left the door open and Buck went through carrying Ezra in his arms, watching his face for any sign of pain.
"Put him on the bed Buck."
Josiah and Vin followed Nathan through the door and stood to the side of the room staying quiet while watching Ezra's pale and sweating face. When JD had said that he was sick they did not realise how serious JD was. Buck gently placed Ezra on the bed being careful not to tug at his side when he removed his arm from around his waist. He took one look at Ezra and then joined the others at the side of the room to let Nathan do his job. Everyone but Nathan looked up when they heard someone else enter the room. They did not expect to see Chris. He looked towards the bed then at the others. No one seemed to be able to look each other in the eye at that moment. They were feeling guilty. Chris stood where he was but he allowed Mary to walk past him. He closed the door and waited like everybody else.
They watched as Nathan removed the blanket and saw that Ezra's hands were tied together. Chris saw this too and had become even more confused. He felt a slight twinge of doubt enter his mind but quickly pushed it away. Maybe there was a reason for this. He did not convince himself of this though and the doubt returned.
"What the hell." said Vin sounding angry "Why are his hands tied like that?"
"That's how we found him," replied JD, showing his own anger in his voice aimed at the other men.
Nathan untied Ezra's hands and threw the strips of sheets on the floor. "I'll need someone to help me with his clothes," he said not looking around.
Josiah was at his side in a moment.
"Help me put him on his left side so I can take these clothes off." It took Nathan nearly five minutes to remove the clothing from Ezra so he could get a better look at his side.
What the others saw caused them to grimace. They saw the infected wound and a large dark bruise above it that seemed to cover half the side of his chest. Buck looked at Chris hoping that he had seen the physical damage that he had caused Ezra.
Nathan was worried. Ezra had not reacted the entire time that he was removing his upper clothing. He knew just looking at his side that some of his ribs would be cracked or broken. Ezra's breathing was slightly difficult but Nathan knew that it would be a lot worse if a broken rib had punctured a lung so he would deal with them later. He had to clean the wound first and that was going to be the most difficult part because it had become infected. It was going to cause Ezra an extreme amount of pain cleaning it and he was going to need to keep him still.
"Josiah, I am going to need you to keep him on his side. You may need to lean against his shoulder and hold his arms down because if he wakes up he is going to fight me all the way, when I clean his wound. Buck could you please hold down his legs so he does not kick out at me."
Josiah sat down on the bed and gently placed himself against Ezra's back and he then took hold of his arms keeping them against Ezra's chest away from the wound on his side. He could feel the burning heat radiating from his body. Josiah quickly said a silent prayer for Ezra.
Buck came over to the bed and leaned down heavy on Ezra's legs. He wanted to make sure that Ezra did not hurt himself anymore than he already was or anyone else for that matter. Ezra had still not moved or even made a sound while Buck and Josiah placed him in this position. They silently looked at each other sharing the same thoughts. A mixture of guilt, shame, fear and anger. The guilt being the strongest now.
"JD is that hot water ready yet."
JD only nodded. He carried the water over to the side of the bed.
Nathan quickly gathered some pieces of clean sheets and turned back towards Ezra. He knew what had to be done but he was not looking forward to it at all.
JD was beginning to feel ill at the thought of the pain that Ezra was about to go through. He could not help but blame himself for what was happening. Until he looked at Chris that is. He began pacing again as he had been doing at the jail cell. His anger was beginning to rise. He kept glancing back and forth between Ezra - his face grimacing in pain - and Chris who was showing no emotion at all. Whenever he glanced back at Chris, his anger continued to grow until he knew that he would explode. He just didn't know what he would do when he did.
"Buck, Josiah are you ready?" they both nodded at Nathan. They trusted Nathan in what he was doing. If only they had trusted Ezra more because if they had he would not be in this position.
Nathan placed the hot moistened cloth on Ezra's wound knowing what his reaction would be. Ezra screamed out in pain. He struggled weakly under Buck and Josiah's grip. When he knew that he could not crawl away from the pain, he turned his head into the pillow to cover his screaming. Ezra had never felt anything so excruciating in his life and there was nothing he could do to stop it. He just wished that whoever was doing it would soon stop and leave him to die so the pain would finally end.
Buck felt Ezra's struggles weaken beneath him. He hated himself for what was happening. He believed Ezra to be a friend and could not think as to why he had allowed himself to treat Ezra this way. He was going to be losing a lot of money to Ezra for a long time for this. He thought that maybe it would be one-step towards his own forgiveness. He did not know how he would even begin to gain Ezra's forgiveness. It would not be as easy as a couple of card games would.
Josiah could not remove his eyes from Ezra's pain filled face. When this was done, he would be praying for God's forgiveness for what had been done to Ezra and he knew that they all were as much to blame as Hanley was. All of them except JD who was the only one of the group who thought that Ezra may have had a reason behind all this.
Mary could not bear to watch. She turned towards the wall with tears in her eyes knowing that Mr Standish should not be suffering like this.
Vin was looking at his own feet. He did not know what he was really feeling right then. His feelings were a mess. He did know that even though Ezra was a murderer he should not have to go through this as a friend. He was never sure about Ezra's loyalty. Did not know if maybe one day he would leave. But as Ezra had said before all this had started that, he had proved himself several times over and it is that thought that stayed in his mind. Was Ezra proving himself worthy of the group again and if so why. They still did not know why he had committed murder.
JD's face had paled considerably at the sound of Ezra's scream. It was at that moment that he realised they hadn't explained to the others what Ezra had told them in the jail.
Ezra let out another scream of pain as Nathan began to try and gently squeeze some of the mucus out of the wound. Nathan had to keep going now matter how bad the pain was for Ezra. If he left any sort of fluid in the wound, it would stay infected.
It was at this second scream that JD lost all control.
Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four
Master Fan Fiction List
First story in 'The Continuing Ezra Standish Saga'
Rating: PG
Warnings: Bad writing ahead!
Fandom: The Magnificent Seven
Genre: Hurt/Comfort
Summary: Marshal Hanley arrives in Four Corners, a man from Ezra's past but is he friend or foe.
Main Characters: Ezra Standish and the rest of the seven
Disclaimers: The guys are owned by CBS, MGM, Trilogy Entertainment Group, and The Mirisch Corp.
Beta: Not betaed – written in the early days when I didn’t know what the words grammar and edit meant. *shamed*
Notes: First story in the ‘Continuing Ezra Standish Saga’.
Spoilers: None.
Word Count: 15,416
Part Three
JD returned a couple of hours later just when it had started to become dark with the meals that the Marshall had requested. Ezra looked a lot worse to him. He face had reddened a little and there was a slight sheen of sweat on his face. JD saw Hanley looking at him and this caused him to think that something was not right. Ezra should be looking better not worse and because of this, JD decided to keep the thought to himself. He will have to talk to the guys about this. If they would listen, that is. Just then, Mary entered hoping to talk to Ezra.
"Mrs Travis." JD greeted her. He saw the look of concern on her face for Ezra.
"Why does he look so ill?" she asked.
"He got shot," said Hanley.
"And you are?" enquired Mary.
"This is Marshall Hanley; he said he had to defend himself when he arrested Ezra. He shot him. But the Marshall cleaned his wound so he should be fine." JD answered for him.
"JD you forgot to tell her what your friend Chris did to him."
Mary looked back at JD the anger showing on her face. "And what was that?"
JD could not look her in the eye so instead he looked at the still form of Ezra. Scared that something was wrong with him.
"He attacked Ezra when he found out why the Marshall had arrested him."
"Kicked him so hard he probably broke some ribs. I bandaged them up though." Hanley added the last part to cover up his tracks.
"Really." she was going to have to speak to Mr Larabee about that in the morning.
"Mrs Travis, why don't we leave Ezra to get his rest and come back tomorrow? I'll walk you to your room." JD guided her out of the office taking one quick glance at Ezra before they left.
He really did not look good.
"JD what's going on?" Mary asked.
"I don't know Mrs Travis. Every time I go in there, Ezra is asleep. The only thing I do know is that tomorrow I am going to have to either convince the guys to help Ezra or work out a way to help him by myself."
"You won't have to do it by yourself. I'll come and talk to them with you and if they still refuse then we will work on a plan together."
JD smiled at this. Finally, someone else wanted to help Ezra. He just hoped that tomorrow was not too late.
Hanley continued through the night to inflict suffering on Ezra. It was either physical pain by causing more damage to his wounded side or emotional pain by telling him how much Charlotte had suffered before she died giving him every detail of the pain that he had caused her. Ezra managed to get through most of this torture by thinking of his own ways to make this man pay for what he had done and what he was doing. Hanley eventually gave up though as it had become more difficult to bring Ezra around each time he wanted to have more fun.
JD decided to check on Ezra before he started to look for everyone else so he and Mrs Travis could talk to them. He did not know how he was going to talk them into helping Ezra. Maybe Mrs Travis could do that part for him. Marshall Hanley was not in the sheriff’s office when he arrived so he was able to stand close to the outer cell and get a better look at Ezra. He was soaked with sweat and moving his head side to side as though in a nightmare. Now JD was really worried.
"What the hell has Hanley been doing?" It was as though he did not want Ezra to get better. Maybe he thought this was better than a hanging. "Well we aren't going to let that happen."
"Ezra?"
"Ezra?" JD called louder this time.
Ezra opened his eyes. They were filled with pain. He turned in the direction of the voice.
"Ah, Mr Dunne what are you doing here?" Ezra croaked.
"I thought I'd come to see how you were doing." JD could see that Ezra had trouble keeping his eyes open. "And I can see that you’re not doing too well at all."
Ezra did not reply.
"Have you had anything to eat or drink since yesterday Ezra?"
JD saw Ezra frown at the question as though he was trying to remember if he had but before he could answer, he turned his head to the side and was asleep again. JD went to the pole for the keys to the cell but found that they were not hanging where they usually were. He tried the desk but found one of the drawers locked. He realised that the Marshall did not want anyone to have a closer look at Ezra so he locked the keys away. JD hurriedly walked out of the building determined to get the others to help him get Ezra away from that man.
JD saw Mrs Travis waiting for him outside of the saloon. She smiled as he arrived.
"You look like you did not get much sleep last night JD."
JD noticed that she herself looked the same. "He's worse." JD did not know any other way to say it.
"We better talk fast then," said Mary before she entered the saloon.
JD followed her in and saw the rest of the group sitting at a table playing cards. They did not seem to be taking much notice of what they were doing though. This might be easier than he thought.
He walked straight to the table. No one looked up at him. Mrs Travis was standing at his side and he looked sideways at her. She nodded for him to continue.
"Ezra's sick." stated JD
Everyone but Chris looked up. JD thought that he saw some concern in their eyes.
"Nathan could you please come and take a look at him."
Before Nathan could answer, Chris spoke up. "How do you know he's sick? He might be trying to con you into helping him without actually asking for help."
"Mr Larabee." Chris looked up at the sound of Mary's voice. "Mr Standish is sick, I have seen him myself."
"I'm sorry but I don't believe that he is. The man is a murderer; he would do anything to get out of a bad situation."
She found it hard to understand why he was acting like this towards Ezra. She looked at the rest of the group and noticed that Buck, Vin and Josiah were looking slightly guilty over what was happening. Maybe she could convince them to help.
"Gentlemen Mr Standish may not want your help but he does need it and he deserves to have it." Mary's voice softened as she said this, thinking that it may make them feel even guiltier and help him.
"Are you sure that he is sick?" asked Buck.
JD looked at Buck. "Yes." He then looked at Nathan. "Nathan if you won't do it for Ezra would you please do it for me."
Buck could not stand it anymore. He stood up. "Come on Nathan, I'll go with you. And I am not going to take no for an answer. The man may have killed someone but he does not deserve to be treated like this. We are supposed to be his friends."
Nathan looked at Chris as though he was asking his permission to go with JD and Buck.
"Do what you want Nathan but I reckon the man deserves what he gets."
"And is that why you attacked him." Mary didn't hide the disgust from her voice.
Chris just looked at her not knowing why she would show any sort of concern for Ezra.
"Great. We have to hurry. I don't know how long Hanley will be gone for." said JD as he followed the others out of the saloon.
As they entered the jail, Hanley watched from across the street. He knew that his game was up and that he had better find a hiding place and plan his next move. He was going to kill Ezra even if it meant dying himself. He left to get his horse ready.
Josiah got up and walked towards the saloon doors.
"Going too are you Josiah?" snarled Chris.
Josiah looked at him. "I am going to stand here and watch just in case I am needed.
Vin smiled at this. Seems everyone was starting to change sides including himself.
Nathan and Buck stood in front of the outer cell looking at Ezra. They then turned to look at each other.
"Where's the keys to the cell JD?" asked Buck.
"One of the desk drawers is locked so I think they are in there."
Buck went over to the desk and tried the drawers until he found the one that was locked. He used the butt of his gun to break the drawer open and pulled out the keys. He opened the outer door cell and then the cell itself. He let Nathan go in first and he stood back and hoped for the best. He could tell himself that Ezra was really sick. He was dripping with sweat and he sounded like he was having trouble breathing, he could hear the rattle from his chest each time he let out a breath. He should have listened to JD sooner.
Nathan knelt down beside the bunk. He looked at Ezra's face. Saw the grimaces of pain. He put his hand on Ezra's forehead and felt the heat burning into the skin of his hand. He turned to Buck.
"He's burning with a fever."
"I told you didn't I." JD said not disguising his anger. "But you wouldn't listen to me would you."
Nathan pulled the blanket back and everyone let out a gasp of shock. They saw Ezra's tied hands but what shocked them most was the amount of blood on his jacket, vest and shirt. Nathan left his hands for the time being and pulled aside Ezra's jacket. He then gently unbuttoned his vest and started to lift his shirt. The shirt stuck to the wound and Nathan had to pull harder. He felt a pair of hands grab him. The grip was weak. He looked down into Ezra's pained filled fevered eyes. Ezra's eyes began to focus.
"Nathan what are you doing?" groaned Ezra.
"You're sick Ezra, and you're going to get my help whether you like it or not."
He turned to continue what he was doing not waiting for Ezra to refuse him again. Nathan was able to lift Ezra's shirt away from the wound without causing him to black out. The wound was swollen and red and there was yellow mucus leaking from it.
"The wound is infected," said Nathan grimly. "We have to get him to my room."
JD was pacing back and forth. He was beginning to get very angry. Particularly at Chris Larabee. It was mostly his fault that Ezra had been left here to get so sick instead of helping him.
"No." said Ezra.
Nathan looked at him amazed that the man could still be stubborn when he was near his deathbed. "Ezra why do you have to keep refusing help. You would die if we left you here."
"And you will die if you take me away from here."
Buck came over then with a confused look on his face. He did not understand what Ezra had meant by that.
"What are you saying Ezra?" asked Buck.
Ezra did not seem to acknowledge that Buck had even asked the question.
"Where is Hanley?" he asked.
"I don't know," answered Nathan. "He was gone when we got here. JD made us come."
Ezra smiled at that. "Hanley said that he would kill anyone who helped me." Ezra was finding it harder to talk. He wanted to go back to sleep but he had to warn them of what Hanley was capable of doing.
"Is that why you did not want our help at the stable?" Buck asked. "Because you thought that he would kill us."
Ezra just nodded. He was falling into unconsciousness again. "That's why he killed Charlotte, she tried to help me."
They all looked at each other. The looks on their faces showing the tremendous amount of guilt that they were feeling. Nathan turned back to Ezra, pulled his shirt back down over his wound, and covered him with the blanket.
"Buck, do think you could carry him to my room?" questioned Nathan, knowing what his answer would be. "JD you go on ahead and start boiling some water for me, where going to need it.
Buck came over and gently lifted Ezra into his arms. Ezra groaned.
"Sorry Ezra. I'll try to be more careful." he said this even though he knew that the gambler would not hear him.
He carried him through the doors outside to the street being careful not to cause any part of Ezra's body to touch anything. Nathan followed him outside.
"Do you think were to late Nathan?"
"I don't know yet Buck, but I hope not."
"If Ezra dies Hanley is going to suffer an even worse fate that anyone could imagine," growled Buck.
"Gentlemen, I think you should come and have a look at this." Josiah called over his shoulder.
"What is it Josiah?" enquired Vin.
"It seems that JD was correct when he said that Ezra was sick."
Vin quickly got up and headed towards the door. Chris sat where he was until he noticed that Mary was looking at him.
"Well?" she asked.
Chris looked back at her for a moment then got up and followed Vin. He was not doing this for Ezra. Chris did not want Mary angry with him. The last thing he wanted was to be on her wrong side.
Vin and Chris looked at Josiah who just nodded in the direction of Nathan's room. They saw Buck carrying a figure wrapped in a blanket. They knew it was Ezra. He was hanging limp in Buck's arms with his head lying against his right shoulder. Nathan was following. Josiah and Vin did not hesitate as they ran towards them. As they got closer, they could see how bad a condition Ezra was in. Their stomachs were tied in knots.
Chris did not know what to think, he was suddenly confused about what was going on. He felt as though he was being pulled in two different directions. He remembered the times that he thought Ezra was a friend and then to the fact that Ezra had admitted to murdering a woman. He nearly turned back to go into the saloon when he heard Mary's voice again.
"At least go and see what is happening Chris, please."
"As long as you understand Mary that I am not going to help him."
Mary nodded thinking that if she argued with him now that he would change his mind and go back inside. Together they walked to Nathan's room. Mary to see what she could do to help and Chris only because Mary had wanted him to.
JD had left the door open and Buck went through carrying Ezra in his arms, watching his face for any sign of pain.
"Put him on the bed Buck."
Josiah and Vin followed Nathan through the door and stood to the side of the room staying quiet while watching Ezra's pale and sweating face. When JD had said that he was sick they did not realise how serious JD was. Buck gently placed Ezra on the bed being careful not to tug at his side when he removed his arm from around his waist. He took one look at Ezra and then joined the others at the side of the room to let Nathan do his job. Everyone but Nathan looked up when they heard someone else enter the room. They did not expect to see Chris. He looked towards the bed then at the others. No one seemed to be able to look each other in the eye at that moment. They were feeling guilty. Chris stood where he was but he allowed Mary to walk past him. He closed the door and waited like everybody else.
They watched as Nathan removed the blanket and saw that Ezra's hands were tied together. Chris saw this too and had become even more confused. He felt a slight twinge of doubt enter his mind but quickly pushed it away. Maybe there was a reason for this. He did not convince himself of this though and the doubt returned.
"What the hell." said Vin sounding angry "Why are his hands tied like that?"
"That's how we found him," replied JD, showing his own anger in his voice aimed at the other men.
Nathan untied Ezra's hands and threw the strips of sheets on the floor. "I'll need someone to help me with his clothes," he said not looking around.
Josiah was at his side in a moment.
"Help me put him on his left side so I can take these clothes off." It took Nathan nearly five minutes to remove the clothing from Ezra so he could get a better look at his side.
What the others saw caused them to grimace. They saw the infected wound and a large dark bruise above it that seemed to cover half the side of his chest. Buck looked at Chris hoping that he had seen the physical damage that he had caused Ezra.
Nathan was worried. Ezra had not reacted the entire time that he was removing his upper clothing. He knew just looking at his side that some of his ribs would be cracked or broken. Ezra's breathing was slightly difficult but Nathan knew that it would be a lot worse if a broken rib had punctured a lung so he would deal with them later. He had to clean the wound first and that was going to be the most difficult part because it had become infected. It was going to cause Ezra an extreme amount of pain cleaning it and he was going to need to keep him still.
"Josiah, I am going to need you to keep him on his side. You may need to lean against his shoulder and hold his arms down because if he wakes up he is going to fight me all the way, when I clean his wound. Buck could you please hold down his legs so he does not kick out at me."
Josiah sat down on the bed and gently placed himself against Ezra's back and he then took hold of his arms keeping them against Ezra's chest away from the wound on his side. He could feel the burning heat radiating from his body. Josiah quickly said a silent prayer for Ezra.
Buck came over to the bed and leaned down heavy on Ezra's legs. He wanted to make sure that Ezra did not hurt himself anymore than he already was or anyone else for that matter. Ezra had still not moved or even made a sound while Buck and Josiah placed him in this position. They silently looked at each other sharing the same thoughts. A mixture of guilt, shame, fear and anger. The guilt being the strongest now.
"JD is that hot water ready yet."
JD only nodded. He carried the water over to the side of the bed.
Nathan quickly gathered some pieces of clean sheets and turned back towards Ezra. He knew what had to be done but he was not looking forward to it at all.
JD was beginning to feel ill at the thought of the pain that Ezra was about to go through. He could not help but blame himself for what was happening. Until he looked at Chris that is. He began pacing again as he had been doing at the jail cell. His anger was beginning to rise. He kept glancing back and forth between Ezra - his face grimacing in pain - and Chris who was showing no emotion at all. Whenever he glanced back at Chris, his anger continued to grow until he knew that he would explode. He just didn't know what he would do when he did.
"Buck, Josiah are you ready?" they both nodded at Nathan. They trusted Nathan in what he was doing. If only they had trusted Ezra more because if they had he would not be in this position.
Nathan placed the hot moistened cloth on Ezra's wound knowing what his reaction would be. Ezra screamed out in pain. He struggled weakly under Buck and Josiah's grip. When he knew that he could not crawl away from the pain, he turned his head into the pillow to cover his screaming. Ezra had never felt anything so excruciating in his life and there was nothing he could do to stop it. He just wished that whoever was doing it would soon stop and leave him to die so the pain would finally end.
Buck felt Ezra's struggles weaken beneath him. He hated himself for what was happening. He believed Ezra to be a friend and could not think as to why he had allowed himself to treat Ezra this way. He was going to be losing a lot of money to Ezra for a long time for this. He thought that maybe it would be one-step towards his own forgiveness. He did not know how he would even begin to gain Ezra's forgiveness. It would not be as easy as a couple of card games would.
Josiah could not remove his eyes from Ezra's pain filled face. When this was done, he would be praying for God's forgiveness for what had been done to Ezra and he knew that they all were as much to blame as Hanley was. All of them except JD who was the only one of the group who thought that Ezra may have had a reason behind all this.
Mary could not bear to watch. She turned towards the wall with tears in her eyes knowing that Mr Standish should not be suffering like this.
Vin was looking at his own feet. He did not know what he was really feeling right then. His feelings were a mess. He did know that even though Ezra was a murderer he should not have to go through this as a friend. He was never sure about Ezra's loyalty. Did not know if maybe one day he would leave. But as Ezra had said before all this had started that, he had proved himself several times over and it is that thought that stayed in his mind. Was Ezra proving himself worthy of the group again and if so why. They still did not know why he had committed murder.
JD's face had paled considerably at the sound of Ezra's scream. It was at that moment that he realised they hadn't explained to the others what Ezra had told them in the jail.
Ezra let out another scream of pain as Nathan began to try and gently squeeze some of the mucus out of the wound. Nathan had to keep going now matter how bad the pain was for Ezra. If he left any sort of fluid in the wound, it would stay infected.
It was at this second scream that JD lost all control.
Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four
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