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azombiewritesTitle: The Cost of Revenge
Eighth story in 'The Continuing Ezra Standish Saga'
Rating: PG
Warnings: Bad writing ahead!
Fandom: The Magnificent Seven
Genre: Hurt/Comfort
Summary: When five of the town's lawmen leave to help a town two days away, Chris and Ezra are left alone but then Chris leaves after receiving information about the murder of his family. Ezra alone, has to protect the town against five outlaws.
Main Characters: Ezra, Vin and the rest of the seven, and some OC's
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. *is ashamed*
Notes: Eighth story in the ‘Continuing Ezra Standish Saga’.
Spoilers: None.
Word Count: 17,305
Part Three
Enid smiled at Buck thankful that Ezra had at least one friend among the six of them. Nathan went and boiled some more water and then gathered some more dressings and herbs. After washing his hands again, he went over to the bed. Buck had moved back to give him more room with Ezra. Nathan first felt his forehead to check his fever, which had not come down at all. He actually felt warmer to Nathan. He then cleaned the wounds on Ezra's back again and dressed them. Buck then came over and helped Nathan turn him over. Ezra groaned and opened his eyes. He felt the pain in his shoulder and tried to roll off it but Nathan held him down.
"Easy, Ezra, I want you to stay still while I clean your wounds."
"Nathan?"
"Yeah and Buck is here too."
Buck moved to Ezra's side in case Nathan needed him to hold him down. Ezra tried to move again as there seemed to be a lot of pain in his shoulder. Buck put his hands on Ezra's arms to hold him down and he felt the heat of the fever. Nathan managed to clean the wound on his side but when he tried to clean his shoulder Ezra gave him a lot more trouble. Nathan lifted the dressing off and Ezra hissed in a quick breath. Nathan saw that there was yellow fluid leaking from the wound. He got a cloth and wet it in the boiling water. He then wiped the herbs and mucus away. Ezra let a small cry of pain and tried to move away from him but Buck kept him from going anywhere. The sweat was beginning to run down the side of Ezra's face. Nathan could see that what he was doing was causing Ezra a lot of pain but he had to do it.
"I'm sorry, Ezra, but I have to clean it and once I have done that I am going to have to check to see why it is still infected."
"Oh great," muttered Ezra.
Buck felt Ezra tense up under his grip. Ezra gritted his teeth together knowing what was to come, he had been through this before and he didn’t enjoy it at all. Nathan wiped as much of the fluid out that he could and then he picked up an instrument to open the wound with. He had to check to see if there was any bone fragments in there. He had found none the first time but the wound was infected and getting worse so he had to check again.
"And what are you going to do with that Nathan," asked Ezra with a strained look on his face. He wanted to go back to sleep but Nathan was not causing enough pain for him to pass out but he was causing enough to keep him awake.
Nathan nodded at Buck and Ezra looked at Buck to see what the nod meant. He felt Buck put more pressure on his arms and while he was looking at him Nathan press the instrument into Ezra's shoulder. Ezra screamed out at the pain and grabbed hold of the bed covers, he pressed himself into the bed to try to get away from it but it only caused more pain from his broken shoulder blade. He didn’t pass out straight away, he felt Nathan digging in the wound looking for something. He was beginning to have trouble breathing and Nathan noticed this and began to hurry. After what felt like an eternity to Ezra, Nathan finally removed a piece of bone that had been hidden by muscle. As the pain eased, he began to relax and breathe easier but then he felt more pain as Nathan began to clean the wound. Nathan squeezed the wound to get as much of the mucus out as he could and this pain finally caused Ezra to blackout.
Buck let out a sigh of relief, as he hated watching Ezra go through this. He looked over at Enid who had been watching everything that Nathan did from the side of the room. Once Nathan had finished he put on another dressing. He noticed that Ezra was now soaked with sweat and that the sheets that he was lying on were also wet from Ezra's sweat. He asked Buck to pick him up for a few minutes while he had Enid help him change the sheets. When Buck put him back down on his stomach Nathan made sure that the dressings were okay and Enid begun to wipe away the moisture that had formed on Ezra's body. They would have to make sure that he had some water when he next woke up.
Ezra slept for the next four hours and during that time, his fever didn’t improve. Nathan had cleaned his wounds four times noticing that each time he cleaned his shoulder the fluid became clearer. Ezra woke again during the fourth time and it was Josiah who held Ezra down while Nathan continued to clean the wound. Buck and taken Enid to the saloon so she could get something to eat and to relax for a while. When Nathan had finished with Ezra's shoulder he gave him some water to drink making sure that he drunk it slowly so he would not make himself sick. Nathan then helped him back onto his stomach. He then left Josiah with him as he went down to the saloon. He didn’t really want to speak to Ezra; he was feeling too guilty about what he thought about him. Thinking it had been his own fault he was in this situation. Josiah noticed that Ezra had not gone back to sleep.
"Where is everyone, Josiah?" asked Ezra. He was feeling extremely uncomfortable as his shoulder was giving him a lot of pain and his side was hurting.
"They’re down in the saloon. Do you want to see them?" Josiah was curious, as usually Ezra didn’t want people around him when he was like this.
"It just seems strange to me that each other time I have been in this situation I have had to put up with everyone hovering over me and yet this time I hardly see anyone. Is there a reason for that?" He saw the look that came over Josiah’s face as he was sitting across from him and Ezra was looking at him when he asked the question. "Well?"
"They’re feeling a bit guilty, well except Buck and JD that is." Josiah watched him as he tried to make himself more comfortable.
"And are you feeling guilty too, Josiah?" Ezra stopped trying to shift into a better position as it only caused him more pain. He gave up and lay where he was. He was beginning to tire but Josiah had gotten his curiosity going and he wanted to know more.
"Yes I am."
"Are you going to tell me what it is that you and the others are feeling guilty about?" He asked him.
"When you’re feeling better Ezra." He said to him.
This made Ezra angry. "If it concerns me, Josiah, I want to know now."
Josiah sighed. "When we got the telegram, the man who delivered said it was in regards to a friend here and Vin, Nathan and myself assumed that it was Chris and then when Buck told us it was you . . ." He stopped for a moment not knowing how to tell him. "We were more interested in knowing if Chris was okay and we also thought that you were shot because of something that you did. You know like a poker game or something like that." He looked at Ezra and saw no expression on his face.
"No, I don't know." Ezra waited for Josiah to say something else, such as apologise for what he thought. But he didn’t say anything. 'He is just like Chris, he will think the wrong thing or assume the wrong thing but he won't apologise for it.' Ezra thought to himself. "So you knew that I had been shot but you were not interested in how I was but how Chris was." It was a statement not a question and before Josiah could say anything Ezra turned his head and closed his eyes. Ezra didn’t understand why they were acting so differently this time as to all the other times he had been hurt.
Josiah didn’t know what to say to him. He knew what they had done was wrong but he couldn't say anything to change it. He heard Ezra say something. "Josiah, why now?"
"What do you mean, Ezra?" He was confused.
"Why are you reacting like this now and not the other times that I’ve been hurt? Why are you not showing any interest as to how I am, I couldn't get rid of anyone before and know no one wants to be near me? Why?"
Josiah hung his head. "It's as I said before, we feel guilty and we’re finding it hard to face you."
"Well you may as well go and join the others then."
"Nathan wants someone to stay with you." It wasn't until he said it that he knew it was the wrong thing to say.
"Then get someone who wants to sit with me. There is no need to force anyone to do it." Ezra growled.
"I'm not being forced, Ezra, I want to stay."
Ezra didn’t answer him though so Josiah got up and moved around to the other side of the bed and bent down so he could look Ezra in the eye. "Ezra, are you still awake." He didn't answer him and Josiah knew that he was not pretending as Ezra was breathing steadily and his facial expression was relaxed except for the occasional grimace from the pain that he was feeling. Josiah put his hand on Ezra's head feeling the fever that was still burning within him. He regretted saying what he did. Even in his sleep, Ezra moved his head away from the touch of human contact. Josiah got up and went back to his seat.
"How can I explain it to you, Ezra, when I can't even explain it to myself?" He said out loud knowing that Ezra didn’t hear him.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Nathan had joined the others at the table. Enid and Buck were also with them. "How’s he doing?" asked Vin. But before Nathan could answer, Enid spoke up.
"Why don't you go up and find out, Vin."
"Enid," warned Buck.
"What?' She looked at Buck and then back at Vin.”He hasn’t even been up there to see how he is."
"Enid," Buck said again.
"No, it's alright Buck, she's right." Vin got up and went to see how Ezra was doing. When he left all eyes turned to Nathan so he could now answer Vin's question.
"The infection is clearing. He woke up while I was cleaning it. But his fever hasn't come down at all." Nathan poured himself a drink. "Once his fever is gone then it's only a matter of rest until he heals."
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
When Vin entered the room, Ezra was asleep again. He went over to Josiah. "How's he doing?" he asked Josiah.
"H’s still got his fever," Josiah shrugged his shoulders. "I told him how we reacted to the telegram."
"What did you do that for?" asked Vin knowing how Ezra probably reacted to that.
"He wanted to know where everyone was. Couldn't understand why we weren't here when every other time we were."
Vin went and sat in the other chair making sure that he was going to be there when Ezra woke up. He didn't want him to think the same thing, that there was no one there to worry about him.
Ezra woke a couple of hours later to find Josiah and Vin sitting with him. He looked at Vin but didn’t say anything. He closed his eyes again. Vin looked over at Josiah who just shrugged back at him. Josiah didn't know what to say, he had already said the wrong thing. It was bad enough that Ezra had to go through so many things physically but to then have his friends think the wrong thing of him, he didn’t need that as well but Josiah - with all his words of wisdom - didn’t know what to say to make him feel better.
"How are you feeling, Ezra?" Vin asked hoping for an answer. He got one.
"Is that query out of guilt or concern, Vin?" Ezra asked back.
Vin grimaced at that. "It's out of concern, Ezra."
"I feel terrible," Ezra muttered back at him.
Josiah got up and felt Ezra's forehead to see how his fever was. He didn’t feel as hot to him as he had been. "I think that your fever is breaking, Ezra."
"Great," said Ezra. He had still not opened his eyes; he didn't want to look at them. He thought he would only see judgement in their eyes. Judgement for what though he didn’t know.
"Do you want to get it off your chest, Ezra?" asked Vin.
"Get what off my chest?" Ezra wondering why he was the one with the problem.
"Whatever it is that is bothering you," said Vin.
Ezra laughed. He couldn't believe it. He stopped and grimaced at the pain that it caused. Vin looked at him and then at Josiah. "What is bothering him is the way we reacted to the telegram." Josiah answered for Ezra knowing that he would not say anything about it.
"Is that it, Ezra? Josiah told me that he told you about that." Ezra didn’t answer him. Vin knew that he would react this way to what happened but he hoped that Ezra would tell him when he asked him what was wrong. He should have known better.
"Why should it bother me, is that not the way you always react to me. None of you like or trust me so I should not expect anything different." Ezra opened his eyes and looked at Vin making sure that he had his poker face on to hide his feelings. "And if you think that it bothers me, it doesn't," he lied.
Vin actually believed him but Josiah didn't. He walked around the bed so he could look at Ezra. "I don't think that you’re telling us the truth Ezra. I think that it does bother you. We can't change what happened, Ezra. It's not that we don't like you Ezra it's just that . . ." he paused for a moment looking at Ezra. He saw the look that came over his face but didn’t realise the look was in regards to the fact that Josiah left out the word trust in that sentence. "It's that all the other times you have been hurt we saw you before we reacted and this time we reacted before we saw how badly you were hurt. We reacted in the wrong way and were sorry."
"There’s that word again," said Ezra. "I may have actually believed you Josiah if you had said that you also trusted me in that apology speech."
"We do trust you, Ezra." Josiah was going to say something more when Buck and JD came in. He could never understand Ezra. It was as though he didn’t want to accept the apology. He complained when everyone stayed close when he was hurt and he complained silently when they stayed away this time.
JD saw that Ezra was awake. All the other times he had been to see him he was still asleep. "Hey Ezra, about time you were awake when I visited. Every time I came you were asleep."
"I’m going to go and let Nathan know that his fever is coming down," said Josiah. Vin got up to go with him.
"You do that Mr Sanchez, it will give him an excuse to see me," said Ezra. Buck and JD looked at each other and then at Josiah but he looked away and left with Vin.
"What was that about, Ezra?" asked Buck as he sat down in the chair opposite the bed.
"Something that I am tired of thinking about." Ezra looked at him and didn’t hide all the emotions he was feeling. "Buck, could you and JD help me onto my back so I can sit up, I am sick of lying on my stomach? And then if I could have some water please?"
"Sure, Ezra. JD, come and give us a hand." They carefully turned Ezra over and then helped him sit up.
They could see the sweat on his face as he struggled against the pain. Once they had done that and Ezra had drunk some water, Buck asked JD to leave them alone for a moment and then come back.
JD nodded and left to wait outside. He saw Nathan coming up the stairs and asked him to wait until Buck finished talking to Ezra.
"You want to tell me what's going on, Ezra?" asked Buck.
No, Buck, it's not that I don't want to talk about. It's just that it is something that won't change and to tell you the truth I don't think that I want it to change." Ezra knew that it was a lie, he wanted it to change but his instinct from too many years of conning and gambling kicked in making him think that it would be better if things stayed the same so if something were to happen and he had to leave then it would be easier to leave these people behind.
"They’re your friends, Ezra; they just never know how to talk to you. You make it too hard for them."
"You don't seem to have any trouble, Buck," Ezra smiled at him.
"It isn't always that easy with me either, Ezra," Buck smiled back at him.
"I'll be fine, Buck, don't worry about me. You know I always end up back on my feet."
"Once in a while you should let someone else help you get back up." Buck got up then. "I'll let JD know he can come back in. Like he said you were always asleep when he came up." Buck went outside and found Nathan with JD.
"I'll check his fever and then meet you back downstairs," Nathan said.
"No you won't, I am staying with him for a while and so are you."
Once Nathan confirmed that Ezra's fever had finally broken they stayed with him until he had fallen asleep again.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
A couple of days later Chris Larabee rode into Clear Creek. The man from the telegraph office had been keeping an eye out for him since yesterday. He ran up to him and asked him if he was Chris Larabee. When Chris said that he was the man handed him a telegram, he told him that it was in regards to Ezra Standish. Chris thought that the man meant that it was from Ezra and then he assumed that Ezra was demanding that he came back. So instead of reading it, he put it in his coat pocket without reading it and that's where it stayed.
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Another two weeks had passed and Enid had spent a lot of time with Ezra. His friends had spent time with him also trying to make up for what they had done. They preferred to hear him complaining about them being there rather than not being there. His shoulder and side had started to heal although his shoulder blade was still giving him trouble. Nathan had made a sling for him to keep his arm in but when Nathan was not around, he kept taking it off.
Ezra was sitting at his usual table when Enid came into the saloon. She was getting ready to leave, she was going to go back home. "Hi, Ezra." She sat down at the table with him.
"Good morning, Enid. And how are you today?" He smiled up at her.
Enid melted every time he smiled like that. "A bit sad to leave." She felt Ezra take her hand and squeeze it.
"I am sad to see you go, Enid." Ezra lifted her hand and placed a soft kiss on it. "I have a lot to thank you for."
"That's okay, Ezra." She blushed and turned her head hoping that Ezra didn’t see how she reacted.
But he had and he smiled at her again. "Thank you, Enid." Ezra leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. Enid closed her eyes hoping for more but Ezra moved back. 'Oh right, you’re a gentlemen.' Thought Enid, wishing that for once Ezra would not act like one.
Before Enid could think of doing more Buck and Vin came in and joined them at the table. "I hear that you’re leaving, Enid," stated Buck.
"Yes, I just have to say goodbye to everyone and then I am going home thanks to you and the others for getting rid of those guys."
"You're welcome, Enid." Buck smiled. Enid sat back knowing that Buck didn’t always act like a gentlemen. She smiled though as she really liked Buck.
"Has anybody heard from, Chris, yet?" asked Vin. He didn’t fail to notice the look that came over Ezra's face at the mention of Chris.
"No, not yet." Buck answered him as he ignored Ezra's expression. He knew what he was thinking.
Chris would have gotten the telegram they were sure of it but they hoped that they were wrong as he didn’t return or send a telegram to find out how Ezra was. "Mary said that he was going to be back in two weeks and it is more than that now, so hopefully any day now."
Enid also saw the look that came over Ezra's face so she tried to change the subject. "So, Ezra, are you going to visit me any time soon."
Ezra put on his poker face and smiled. It was a genuine smile though. "Of course, Enid, I would love to visit you."
"Great I am just going to say goodbye to Mary and then you can see me off." She patted his hand and left the saloon. She didn't see Chris riding up to the saloon from the other side of town.
They sat there in an awkward silence. The relationship between Ezra and the others was still strained and Buck just hoped that things would get back to normal soon. Buck got up making his excuses hoping that Vin would stay with Ezra but he didn't he said that he would help him. Buck gave him a look that Ezra didn’t miss. He had to smile though; Buck just had to keep trying. Ezra then got up and went to the bar to get another bottle of whiskey. He favoured his shoulder a little bit, as he had taken the sling off earlier. He hated that thing. He turned around to see Chris walk into the saloon.
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Chris was in a foul mood when he rode back into Four Corners, the last two and a half weeks was a waste of his time. The information turned out to be a false lead. He saw Buck and Vin leave the saloon but he didn’t call to them, as he just wanted a drink now. He will face them later. He walked into the saloon to see Ezra standing at the bar. 'Great.' he thought to himself. He saw the scowl that formed on Ezra's face, he remembered their last conversation, and that was enough to set him off.
Ezra saw Chris and could not help the expression that came over his face. He put his glass down as Chris walked up to him. Ezra didn’t say anything to him though, he saw the mood Chris was in and the last thing that he needed now was an argument especially if it became a physical one.
"So, Ezra, are you ready to pick up from where we left off." Chris made sure that the anger he was feeling showed in his voice, even though some of the anger had nothing to do with Ezra. He needed to let it out and Ezra had given him a good enough reason.
"I'm afraid that it will have to wait, Chris." Ezra smiled at him. If it were not for his shoulder, Ezra would not have hesitated.
Chris looked around the room. "There are no woman here, Ezra. What’s your excuse this time?"
"No excuse. I’m just not able to fight you at the moment."
Chris didn’t want to end it there though as he wanted a fight, he needed a fight. He pushed Ezra against the bar hoping that it would goad him into one. Ezra felt the pain explode in his shoulder and another pain in his side. Neither shoulder blade nor rib had completely healed yet. He tried to hide the pain that he felt; he was able to keep the cry of pain escaping from his throat but could not stop the grimace that crossed his face.
"I can't fight you now, Chris," said Ezra getting angry himself.
"Well you’re going to, Ezra, because I want to finish what we started." He pushed Ezra against the bar again. This time Ezra grunted at the pain as it shot through his shoulder and side. The sweat started to form on his brow. He placed his left arm on his right shoulder. Chris then grabbed his jacket and pulled him to him. He was going to turn him around so he had more room to throw the punch.
"Let go of him!" Enid yelled across the room. Enid had come in to see Chris grabbed Ezra. She could see the pain on Ezra's face; Chris must have already done something to cause it. He didn’t let him go though, instead he turned him around.
Enid ran up to them. "I said let him go!" She yelled into Chris's face.
"I see your lady friend has come to your rescue," said Chris. He threw Ezra to the ground in disgust, thinking that he was a coward for not wanting to fight.
Ezra nearly blacked out when he landed. He shoulder took the full force of the landing and this time his voiced his pain. He lay there for a few moments waiting for the blackness to come but it didn't. When it passed he looked up at Chris. He heard Enid yelling at Chris.
"What do you think you’re doing, can't you see that he's hurt!" She was still yelling.
"He's not hurt, I hardly touched him. He's just a good actor that's all," growled Chris.
"He is not acting." She was so angry at him that she couldn’t say anymore at that moment. She bent down to help Ezra up. She held onto his left arm and pulled him up. She then helped him into a chair.
Ezra was holding his shoulder and grimacing at the pain that he was feeling. "Are you okay, Ezra?" but she didn’t wait for an answer, she turned around seeing someone else standing close to them.
"Could you go and find Nathan please and tell him that Ezra needs some help." The man nodded and left.
Chris was watching what was going on. He listened as Enid spoke to Ezra. "It's your shoulder isn't it, and your side?"
He saw Ezra nod and then watched him as he leaned over, pain showing on his face. 'What the hell is going on here?' He thought to himself instead of asking aloud. He was very confused.
Chris looked up as he saw Nathan come past him followed by Buck and Vin. They saw Chris but ignored him for the moment, as they wanted to make sure that Ezra was okay.
"Ezra, what's wrong?" asked Nathan. Ezra was in too much pain to answer, Enid saw this so she answered for him.
"That man . . ." she pointed at Chris, "roughed him up and then threw him on the ground. He landed on his shoulder."
Nathan looked up at Chris who had a very confused look on his face. "Chris didn't know, Enid." Nathan knew this from the look on Chris's face.
"So! Are you still defending him? It's no excuse."
"Ezra, I'm going to need to take your jacket off, okay."
Ezra nodded and gritted his teeth against the pain as Nathan help him remove his jacket; he then took off his waistcoat so he could feel the bone in his shoulder better. Nathan first felt his side to make sure that the broken rib was okay, that it had not been broken again. Ezra winced and moved away from Nathan at the pain he caused when he pressed against his rib. Chris was still watching the scene now realising that there was something wrong with Ezra.
"I'm going to check your shoulder now, are you ready?" asked Nathan.
"No," muttered Ezra.
Nathan used his thumbs to gently press against the shoulder blade testing it first. He felt Ezra trying to move away from him and he nodded to Buck who came forward and held Ezra against the chair.
"Sorry, Ezra," he smiled at him.
"No, you're not, Buck," growled Ezra.
Nathan pressed harder and Ezra cried out in pain. Chris winced himself, he had no idea what was going on. "Sorry Ezra, but the bone is cracked again."
"Please don't tell me that you’re going to have to put that instrument in my shoulder again."
Nathan could see the pleading look in Ezra's eyes. "Not at the moment, Ezra, I will wait and see how you go first. By the way where’s that sling that I told you to wear?"
"It's in my jacket pocket," said Ezra as he looked away from Nathan.
Nathan shook his head at him, got the sling out of his jacket, and fixed it around his arm. "You’re going to have to keep that in there for at least four weeks, Ezra," he smiled as Ezra scowled at him.
"Does someone want to tell me what the hell is going on here?" asked Chris. Everyone but Ezra looked at him.
Enid spoke up before anyone else could. "You nearly got him killed," she said. Chris was shocked.
"It was not his fault, Enid," Ezra said.
"Yes it was, Ezra. If he didn't leave town he could have helped you deal with those five outlaws but instead he didn't care if he left you alone."
"What is she talking about, Ezra," asked Chris.
"After you left I had an altercation with some outlaws," Ezra said.
Chris looked at the others. "Mary was taken hostage and Ezra had no choice but to put his guns down because they were going to kill her, after he did they tried to kill him instead." Enid walked up to face Chris. "They shot him twice, once in the shoulder breaking his shoulder blade and in the side and that one broke a rib as well."
"I'm sorry, Ezra, I didn't know." Chris didn’t see the anger on Ezra's face as he was looking down.
"We sent someone after you but they couldn't catch you so Mary sent a telegram," said Enid as she saw Chris's face change. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the unread telegram.
"I didn't read it," he muttered. "I'm sorry."
"Yes, well you have a lot to be sorry about."
Nathan could see that Ezra was in a lot of pain. "Ezra, why don't we get you up to your room and I’ll make you something that will help the pain." The fact that Ezra didn’t complain only confirmed the pain that he was in.
"Nathan, you go and get what you need and well get him up to his room," said Buck. He had not moved from Ezra just in case he fell off his chair. He could also see the pain that he was in. Buck helped him up and with Enid; they helped him to his room. Vin stayed with Chris and went into more detail of what Enid and Mary had them about what happened to Ezra.
When Nathan came back, Chris followed him up to Ezra's room. When they went in the found that Ezra had already fallen asleep and was lying on his stomach again. "He passed out from the pain," explained Enid.
Nathan made the mixture anyway and left it on the table next to Ezra's bed. "I'll stay with him and when he wakes up I'll make sure that he drinks it," said Enid.
"But you were leaving town," said Buck.
"I think that I need to stay a bit longer." She looked at Chris as she said it.
"I'm sorry, Enid, I had no idea," apologised Chris.
"Yeah well, you better hope that Ezra forgives you because I won't. Now if you don't mind leaving." she turned her back on him then and went and sat with Ezra.
Chris left the room with Nathan and Buck and joined Vin in the saloon.
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The next morning Chris was sitting in the saloon when Ezra came down the stairs. Chris saw that he had his arm in a sling. Ezra didn’t see him as he went to the bar to get a drink. Chris joined him there.
"Ezra."
"Chris."
"I'm sorry, Ezra, I should have known better."
"I accept your apology," he lied. He was not in the mood for an argument. He just wanted to get away from him. Maybe when he was feeling better.
"So everything is fine then." Chris hoped as he thought that Ezra accepted his apology a little too quickly.
"It's the same as it always is Chris," said Ezra.
"And how is that Ezra?" he asked.
"Complicated." Ezra took his bottle then and walked away leaving Chris with a confused look on his face.
The End
Part One | Part Two | Part Three
Master Fan Fiction List
Eighth story in 'The Continuing Ezra Standish Saga'
Rating: PG
Warnings: Bad writing ahead!
Fandom: The Magnificent Seven
Genre: Hurt/Comfort
Summary: When five of the town's lawmen leave to help a town two days away, Chris and Ezra are left alone but then Chris leaves after receiving information about the murder of his family. Ezra alone, has to protect the town against five outlaws.
Main Characters: Ezra, Vin and the rest of the seven, and some OC's
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. *is ashamed*
Notes: Eighth story in the ‘Continuing Ezra Standish Saga’.
Spoilers: None.
Word Count: 17,305
Part Three
Enid smiled at Buck thankful that Ezra had at least one friend among the six of them. Nathan went and boiled some more water and then gathered some more dressings and herbs. After washing his hands again, he went over to the bed. Buck had moved back to give him more room with Ezra. Nathan first felt his forehead to check his fever, which had not come down at all. He actually felt warmer to Nathan. He then cleaned the wounds on Ezra's back again and dressed them. Buck then came over and helped Nathan turn him over. Ezra groaned and opened his eyes. He felt the pain in his shoulder and tried to roll off it but Nathan held him down.
"Easy, Ezra, I want you to stay still while I clean your wounds."
"Nathan?"
"Yeah and Buck is here too."
Buck moved to Ezra's side in case Nathan needed him to hold him down. Ezra tried to move again as there seemed to be a lot of pain in his shoulder. Buck put his hands on Ezra's arms to hold him down and he felt the heat of the fever. Nathan managed to clean the wound on his side but when he tried to clean his shoulder Ezra gave him a lot more trouble. Nathan lifted the dressing off and Ezra hissed in a quick breath. Nathan saw that there was yellow fluid leaking from the wound. He got a cloth and wet it in the boiling water. He then wiped the herbs and mucus away. Ezra let a small cry of pain and tried to move away from him but Buck kept him from going anywhere. The sweat was beginning to run down the side of Ezra's face. Nathan could see that what he was doing was causing Ezra a lot of pain but he had to do it.
"I'm sorry, Ezra, but I have to clean it and once I have done that I am going to have to check to see why it is still infected."
"Oh great," muttered Ezra.
Buck felt Ezra tense up under his grip. Ezra gritted his teeth together knowing what was to come, he had been through this before and he didn’t enjoy it at all. Nathan wiped as much of the fluid out that he could and then he picked up an instrument to open the wound with. He had to check to see if there was any bone fragments in there. He had found none the first time but the wound was infected and getting worse so he had to check again.
"And what are you going to do with that Nathan," asked Ezra with a strained look on his face. He wanted to go back to sleep but Nathan was not causing enough pain for him to pass out but he was causing enough to keep him awake.
Nathan nodded at Buck and Ezra looked at Buck to see what the nod meant. He felt Buck put more pressure on his arms and while he was looking at him Nathan press the instrument into Ezra's shoulder. Ezra screamed out at the pain and grabbed hold of the bed covers, he pressed himself into the bed to try to get away from it but it only caused more pain from his broken shoulder blade. He didn’t pass out straight away, he felt Nathan digging in the wound looking for something. He was beginning to have trouble breathing and Nathan noticed this and began to hurry. After what felt like an eternity to Ezra, Nathan finally removed a piece of bone that had been hidden by muscle. As the pain eased, he began to relax and breathe easier but then he felt more pain as Nathan began to clean the wound. Nathan squeezed the wound to get as much of the mucus out as he could and this pain finally caused Ezra to blackout.
Buck let out a sigh of relief, as he hated watching Ezra go through this. He looked over at Enid who had been watching everything that Nathan did from the side of the room. Once Nathan had finished he put on another dressing. He noticed that Ezra was now soaked with sweat and that the sheets that he was lying on were also wet from Ezra's sweat. He asked Buck to pick him up for a few minutes while he had Enid help him change the sheets. When Buck put him back down on his stomach Nathan made sure that the dressings were okay and Enid begun to wipe away the moisture that had formed on Ezra's body. They would have to make sure that he had some water when he next woke up.
Ezra slept for the next four hours and during that time, his fever didn’t improve. Nathan had cleaned his wounds four times noticing that each time he cleaned his shoulder the fluid became clearer. Ezra woke again during the fourth time and it was Josiah who held Ezra down while Nathan continued to clean the wound. Buck and taken Enid to the saloon so she could get something to eat and to relax for a while. When Nathan had finished with Ezra's shoulder he gave him some water to drink making sure that he drunk it slowly so he would not make himself sick. Nathan then helped him back onto his stomach. He then left Josiah with him as he went down to the saloon. He didn’t really want to speak to Ezra; he was feeling too guilty about what he thought about him. Thinking it had been his own fault he was in this situation. Josiah noticed that Ezra had not gone back to sleep.
"Where is everyone, Josiah?" asked Ezra. He was feeling extremely uncomfortable as his shoulder was giving him a lot of pain and his side was hurting.
"They’re down in the saloon. Do you want to see them?" Josiah was curious, as usually Ezra didn’t want people around him when he was like this.
"It just seems strange to me that each other time I have been in this situation I have had to put up with everyone hovering over me and yet this time I hardly see anyone. Is there a reason for that?" He saw the look that came over Josiah’s face as he was sitting across from him and Ezra was looking at him when he asked the question. "Well?"
"They’re feeling a bit guilty, well except Buck and JD that is." Josiah watched him as he tried to make himself more comfortable.
"And are you feeling guilty too, Josiah?" Ezra stopped trying to shift into a better position as it only caused him more pain. He gave up and lay where he was. He was beginning to tire but Josiah had gotten his curiosity going and he wanted to know more.
"Yes I am."
"Are you going to tell me what it is that you and the others are feeling guilty about?" He asked him.
"When you’re feeling better Ezra." He said to him.
This made Ezra angry. "If it concerns me, Josiah, I want to know now."
Josiah sighed. "When we got the telegram, the man who delivered said it was in regards to a friend here and Vin, Nathan and myself assumed that it was Chris and then when Buck told us it was you . . ." He stopped for a moment not knowing how to tell him. "We were more interested in knowing if Chris was okay and we also thought that you were shot because of something that you did. You know like a poker game or something like that." He looked at Ezra and saw no expression on his face.
"No, I don't know." Ezra waited for Josiah to say something else, such as apologise for what he thought. But he didn’t say anything. 'He is just like Chris, he will think the wrong thing or assume the wrong thing but he won't apologise for it.' Ezra thought to himself. "So you knew that I had been shot but you were not interested in how I was but how Chris was." It was a statement not a question and before Josiah could say anything Ezra turned his head and closed his eyes. Ezra didn’t understand why they were acting so differently this time as to all the other times he had been hurt.
Josiah didn’t know what to say to him. He knew what they had done was wrong but he couldn't say anything to change it. He heard Ezra say something. "Josiah, why now?"
"What do you mean, Ezra?" He was confused.
"Why are you reacting like this now and not the other times that I’ve been hurt? Why are you not showing any interest as to how I am, I couldn't get rid of anyone before and know no one wants to be near me? Why?"
Josiah hung his head. "It's as I said before, we feel guilty and we’re finding it hard to face you."
"Well you may as well go and join the others then."
"Nathan wants someone to stay with you." It wasn't until he said it that he knew it was the wrong thing to say.
"Then get someone who wants to sit with me. There is no need to force anyone to do it." Ezra growled.
"I'm not being forced, Ezra, I want to stay."
Ezra didn’t answer him though so Josiah got up and moved around to the other side of the bed and bent down so he could look Ezra in the eye. "Ezra, are you still awake." He didn't answer him and Josiah knew that he was not pretending as Ezra was breathing steadily and his facial expression was relaxed except for the occasional grimace from the pain that he was feeling. Josiah put his hand on Ezra's head feeling the fever that was still burning within him. He regretted saying what he did. Even in his sleep, Ezra moved his head away from the touch of human contact. Josiah got up and went back to his seat.
"How can I explain it to you, Ezra, when I can't even explain it to myself?" He said out loud knowing that Ezra didn’t hear him.
Nathan had joined the others at the table. Enid and Buck were also with them. "How’s he doing?" asked Vin. But before Nathan could answer, Enid spoke up.
"Why don't you go up and find out, Vin."
"Enid," warned Buck.
"What?' She looked at Buck and then back at Vin.”He hasn’t even been up there to see how he is."
"Enid," Buck said again.
"No, it's alright Buck, she's right." Vin got up and went to see how Ezra was doing. When he left all eyes turned to Nathan so he could now answer Vin's question.
"The infection is clearing. He woke up while I was cleaning it. But his fever hasn't come down at all." Nathan poured himself a drink. "Once his fever is gone then it's only a matter of rest until he heals."
When Vin entered the room, Ezra was asleep again. He went over to Josiah. "How's he doing?" he asked Josiah.
"H’s still got his fever," Josiah shrugged his shoulders. "I told him how we reacted to the telegram."
"What did you do that for?" asked Vin knowing how Ezra probably reacted to that.
"He wanted to know where everyone was. Couldn't understand why we weren't here when every other time we were."
Vin went and sat in the other chair making sure that he was going to be there when Ezra woke up. He didn't want him to think the same thing, that there was no one there to worry about him.
Ezra woke a couple of hours later to find Josiah and Vin sitting with him. He looked at Vin but didn’t say anything. He closed his eyes again. Vin looked over at Josiah who just shrugged back at him. Josiah didn't know what to say, he had already said the wrong thing. It was bad enough that Ezra had to go through so many things physically but to then have his friends think the wrong thing of him, he didn’t need that as well but Josiah - with all his words of wisdom - didn’t know what to say to make him feel better.
"How are you feeling, Ezra?" Vin asked hoping for an answer. He got one.
"Is that query out of guilt or concern, Vin?" Ezra asked back.
Vin grimaced at that. "It's out of concern, Ezra."
"I feel terrible," Ezra muttered back at him.
Josiah got up and felt Ezra's forehead to see how his fever was. He didn’t feel as hot to him as he had been. "I think that your fever is breaking, Ezra."
"Great," said Ezra. He had still not opened his eyes; he didn't want to look at them. He thought he would only see judgement in their eyes. Judgement for what though he didn’t know.
"Do you want to get it off your chest, Ezra?" asked Vin.
"Get what off my chest?" Ezra wondering why he was the one with the problem.
"Whatever it is that is bothering you," said Vin.
Ezra laughed. He couldn't believe it. He stopped and grimaced at the pain that it caused. Vin looked at him and then at Josiah. "What is bothering him is the way we reacted to the telegram." Josiah answered for Ezra knowing that he would not say anything about it.
"Is that it, Ezra? Josiah told me that he told you about that." Ezra didn’t answer him. Vin knew that he would react this way to what happened but he hoped that Ezra would tell him when he asked him what was wrong. He should have known better.
"Why should it bother me, is that not the way you always react to me. None of you like or trust me so I should not expect anything different." Ezra opened his eyes and looked at Vin making sure that he had his poker face on to hide his feelings. "And if you think that it bothers me, it doesn't," he lied.
Vin actually believed him but Josiah didn't. He walked around the bed so he could look at Ezra. "I don't think that you’re telling us the truth Ezra. I think that it does bother you. We can't change what happened, Ezra. It's not that we don't like you Ezra it's just that . . ." he paused for a moment looking at Ezra. He saw the look that came over his face but didn’t realise the look was in regards to the fact that Josiah left out the word trust in that sentence. "It's that all the other times you have been hurt we saw you before we reacted and this time we reacted before we saw how badly you were hurt. We reacted in the wrong way and were sorry."
"There’s that word again," said Ezra. "I may have actually believed you Josiah if you had said that you also trusted me in that apology speech."
"We do trust you, Ezra." Josiah was going to say something more when Buck and JD came in. He could never understand Ezra. It was as though he didn’t want to accept the apology. He complained when everyone stayed close when he was hurt and he complained silently when they stayed away this time.
JD saw that Ezra was awake. All the other times he had been to see him he was still asleep. "Hey Ezra, about time you were awake when I visited. Every time I came you were asleep."
"I’m going to go and let Nathan know that his fever is coming down," said Josiah. Vin got up to go with him.
"You do that Mr Sanchez, it will give him an excuse to see me," said Ezra. Buck and JD looked at each other and then at Josiah but he looked away and left with Vin.
"What was that about, Ezra?" asked Buck as he sat down in the chair opposite the bed.
"Something that I am tired of thinking about." Ezra looked at him and didn’t hide all the emotions he was feeling. "Buck, could you and JD help me onto my back so I can sit up, I am sick of lying on my stomach? And then if I could have some water please?"
"Sure, Ezra. JD, come and give us a hand." They carefully turned Ezra over and then helped him sit up.
They could see the sweat on his face as he struggled against the pain. Once they had done that and Ezra had drunk some water, Buck asked JD to leave them alone for a moment and then come back.
JD nodded and left to wait outside. He saw Nathan coming up the stairs and asked him to wait until Buck finished talking to Ezra.
"You want to tell me what's going on, Ezra?" asked Buck.
No, Buck, it's not that I don't want to talk about. It's just that it is something that won't change and to tell you the truth I don't think that I want it to change." Ezra knew that it was a lie, he wanted it to change but his instinct from too many years of conning and gambling kicked in making him think that it would be better if things stayed the same so if something were to happen and he had to leave then it would be easier to leave these people behind.
"They’re your friends, Ezra; they just never know how to talk to you. You make it too hard for them."
"You don't seem to have any trouble, Buck," Ezra smiled at him.
"It isn't always that easy with me either, Ezra," Buck smiled back at him.
"I'll be fine, Buck, don't worry about me. You know I always end up back on my feet."
"Once in a while you should let someone else help you get back up." Buck got up then. "I'll let JD know he can come back in. Like he said you were always asleep when he came up." Buck went outside and found Nathan with JD.
"I'll check his fever and then meet you back downstairs," Nathan said.
"No you won't, I am staying with him for a while and so are you."
Once Nathan confirmed that Ezra's fever had finally broken they stayed with him until he had fallen asleep again.
A couple of days later Chris Larabee rode into Clear Creek. The man from the telegraph office had been keeping an eye out for him since yesterday. He ran up to him and asked him if he was Chris Larabee. When Chris said that he was the man handed him a telegram, he told him that it was in regards to Ezra Standish. Chris thought that the man meant that it was from Ezra and then he assumed that Ezra was demanding that he came back. So instead of reading it, he put it in his coat pocket without reading it and that's where it stayed.
Another two weeks had passed and Enid had spent a lot of time with Ezra. His friends had spent time with him also trying to make up for what they had done. They preferred to hear him complaining about them being there rather than not being there. His shoulder and side had started to heal although his shoulder blade was still giving him trouble. Nathan had made a sling for him to keep his arm in but when Nathan was not around, he kept taking it off.
Ezra was sitting at his usual table when Enid came into the saloon. She was getting ready to leave, she was going to go back home. "Hi, Ezra." She sat down at the table with him.
"Good morning, Enid. And how are you today?" He smiled up at her.
Enid melted every time he smiled like that. "A bit sad to leave." She felt Ezra take her hand and squeeze it.
"I am sad to see you go, Enid." Ezra lifted her hand and placed a soft kiss on it. "I have a lot to thank you for."
"That's okay, Ezra." She blushed and turned her head hoping that Ezra didn’t see how she reacted.
But he had and he smiled at her again. "Thank you, Enid." Ezra leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. Enid closed her eyes hoping for more but Ezra moved back. 'Oh right, you’re a gentlemen.' Thought Enid, wishing that for once Ezra would not act like one.
Before Enid could think of doing more Buck and Vin came in and joined them at the table. "I hear that you’re leaving, Enid," stated Buck.
"Yes, I just have to say goodbye to everyone and then I am going home thanks to you and the others for getting rid of those guys."
"You're welcome, Enid." Buck smiled. Enid sat back knowing that Buck didn’t always act like a gentlemen. She smiled though as she really liked Buck.
"Has anybody heard from, Chris, yet?" asked Vin. He didn’t fail to notice the look that came over Ezra's face at the mention of Chris.
"No, not yet." Buck answered him as he ignored Ezra's expression. He knew what he was thinking.
Chris would have gotten the telegram they were sure of it but they hoped that they were wrong as he didn’t return or send a telegram to find out how Ezra was. "Mary said that he was going to be back in two weeks and it is more than that now, so hopefully any day now."
Enid also saw the look that came over Ezra's face so she tried to change the subject. "So, Ezra, are you going to visit me any time soon."
Ezra put on his poker face and smiled. It was a genuine smile though. "Of course, Enid, I would love to visit you."
"Great I am just going to say goodbye to Mary and then you can see me off." She patted his hand and left the saloon. She didn't see Chris riding up to the saloon from the other side of town.
They sat there in an awkward silence. The relationship between Ezra and the others was still strained and Buck just hoped that things would get back to normal soon. Buck got up making his excuses hoping that Vin would stay with Ezra but he didn't he said that he would help him. Buck gave him a look that Ezra didn’t miss. He had to smile though; Buck just had to keep trying. Ezra then got up and went to the bar to get another bottle of whiskey. He favoured his shoulder a little bit, as he had taken the sling off earlier. He hated that thing. He turned around to see Chris walk into the saloon.
Chris was in a foul mood when he rode back into Four Corners, the last two and a half weeks was a waste of his time. The information turned out to be a false lead. He saw Buck and Vin leave the saloon but he didn’t call to them, as he just wanted a drink now. He will face them later. He walked into the saloon to see Ezra standing at the bar. 'Great.' he thought to himself. He saw the scowl that formed on Ezra's face, he remembered their last conversation, and that was enough to set him off.
Ezra saw Chris and could not help the expression that came over his face. He put his glass down as Chris walked up to him. Ezra didn’t say anything to him though, he saw the mood Chris was in and the last thing that he needed now was an argument especially if it became a physical one.
"So, Ezra, are you ready to pick up from where we left off." Chris made sure that the anger he was feeling showed in his voice, even though some of the anger had nothing to do with Ezra. He needed to let it out and Ezra had given him a good enough reason.
"I'm afraid that it will have to wait, Chris." Ezra smiled at him. If it were not for his shoulder, Ezra would not have hesitated.
Chris looked around the room. "There are no woman here, Ezra. What’s your excuse this time?"
"No excuse. I’m just not able to fight you at the moment."
Chris didn’t want to end it there though as he wanted a fight, he needed a fight. He pushed Ezra against the bar hoping that it would goad him into one. Ezra felt the pain explode in his shoulder and another pain in his side. Neither shoulder blade nor rib had completely healed yet. He tried to hide the pain that he felt; he was able to keep the cry of pain escaping from his throat but could not stop the grimace that crossed his face.
"I can't fight you now, Chris," said Ezra getting angry himself.
"Well you’re going to, Ezra, because I want to finish what we started." He pushed Ezra against the bar again. This time Ezra grunted at the pain as it shot through his shoulder and side. The sweat started to form on his brow. He placed his left arm on his right shoulder. Chris then grabbed his jacket and pulled him to him. He was going to turn him around so he had more room to throw the punch.
"Let go of him!" Enid yelled across the room. Enid had come in to see Chris grabbed Ezra. She could see the pain on Ezra's face; Chris must have already done something to cause it. He didn’t let him go though, instead he turned him around.
Enid ran up to them. "I said let him go!" She yelled into Chris's face.
"I see your lady friend has come to your rescue," said Chris. He threw Ezra to the ground in disgust, thinking that he was a coward for not wanting to fight.
Ezra nearly blacked out when he landed. He shoulder took the full force of the landing and this time his voiced his pain. He lay there for a few moments waiting for the blackness to come but it didn't. When it passed he looked up at Chris. He heard Enid yelling at Chris.
"What do you think you’re doing, can't you see that he's hurt!" She was still yelling.
"He's not hurt, I hardly touched him. He's just a good actor that's all," growled Chris.
"He is not acting." She was so angry at him that she couldn’t say anymore at that moment. She bent down to help Ezra up. She held onto his left arm and pulled him up. She then helped him into a chair.
Ezra was holding his shoulder and grimacing at the pain that he was feeling. "Are you okay, Ezra?" but she didn’t wait for an answer, she turned around seeing someone else standing close to them.
"Could you go and find Nathan please and tell him that Ezra needs some help." The man nodded and left.
Chris was watching what was going on. He listened as Enid spoke to Ezra. "It's your shoulder isn't it, and your side?"
He saw Ezra nod and then watched him as he leaned over, pain showing on his face. 'What the hell is going on here?' He thought to himself instead of asking aloud. He was very confused.
Chris looked up as he saw Nathan come past him followed by Buck and Vin. They saw Chris but ignored him for the moment, as they wanted to make sure that Ezra was okay.
"Ezra, what's wrong?" asked Nathan. Ezra was in too much pain to answer, Enid saw this so she answered for him.
"That man . . ." she pointed at Chris, "roughed him up and then threw him on the ground. He landed on his shoulder."
Nathan looked up at Chris who had a very confused look on his face. "Chris didn't know, Enid." Nathan knew this from the look on Chris's face.
"So! Are you still defending him? It's no excuse."
"Ezra, I'm going to need to take your jacket off, okay."
Ezra nodded and gritted his teeth against the pain as Nathan help him remove his jacket; he then took off his waistcoat so he could feel the bone in his shoulder better. Nathan first felt his side to make sure that the broken rib was okay, that it had not been broken again. Ezra winced and moved away from Nathan at the pain he caused when he pressed against his rib. Chris was still watching the scene now realising that there was something wrong with Ezra.
"I'm going to check your shoulder now, are you ready?" asked Nathan.
"No," muttered Ezra.
Nathan used his thumbs to gently press against the shoulder blade testing it first. He felt Ezra trying to move away from him and he nodded to Buck who came forward and held Ezra against the chair.
"Sorry, Ezra," he smiled at him.
"No, you're not, Buck," growled Ezra.
Nathan pressed harder and Ezra cried out in pain. Chris winced himself, he had no idea what was going on. "Sorry Ezra, but the bone is cracked again."
"Please don't tell me that you’re going to have to put that instrument in my shoulder again."
Nathan could see the pleading look in Ezra's eyes. "Not at the moment, Ezra, I will wait and see how you go first. By the way where’s that sling that I told you to wear?"
"It's in my jacket pocket," said Ezra as he looked away from Nathan.
Nathan shook his head at him, got the sling out of his jacket, and fixed it around his arm. "You’re going to have to keep that in there for at least four weeks, Ezra," he smiled as Ezra scowled at him.
"Does someone want to tell me what the hell is going on here?" asked Chris. Everyone but Ezra looked at him.
Enid spoke up before anyone else could. "You nearly got him killed," she said. Chris was shocked.
"It was not his fault, Enid," Ezra said.
"Yes it was, Ezra. If he didn't leave town he could have helped you deal with those five outlaws but instead he didn't care if he left you alone."
"What is she talking about, Ezra," asked Chris.
"After you left I had an altercation with some outlaws," Ezra said.
Chris looked at the others. "Mary was taken hostage and Ezra had no choice but to put his guns down because they were going to kill her, after he did they tried to kill him instead." Enid walked up to face Chris. "They shot him twice, once in the shoulder breaking his shoulder blade and in the side and that one broke a rib as well."
"I'm sorry, Ezra, I didn't know." Chris didn’t see the anger on Ezra's face as he was looking down.
"We sent someone after you but they couldn't catch you so Mary sent a telegram," said Enid as she saw Chris's face change. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the unread telegram.
"I didn't read it," he muttered. "I'm sorry."
"Yes, well you have a lot to be sorry about."
Nathan could see that Ezra was in a lot of pain. "Ezra, why don't we get you up to your room and I’ll make you something that will help the pain." The fact that Ezra didn’t complain only confirmed the pain that he was in.
"Nathan, you go and get what you need and well get him up to his room," said Buck. He had not moved from Ezra just in case he fell off his chair. He could also see the pain that he was in. Buck helped him up and with Enid; they helped him to his room. Vin stayed with Chris and went into more detail of what Enid and Mary had them about what happened to Ezra.
When Nathan came back, Chris followed him up to Ezra's room. When they went in the found that Ezra had already fallen asleep and was lying on his stomach again. "He passed out from the pain," explained Enid.
Nathan made the mixture anyway and left it on the table next to Ezra's bed. "I'll stay with him and when he wakes up I'll make sure that he drinks it," said Enid.
"But you were leaving town," said Buck.
"I think that I need to stay a bit longer." She looked at Chris as she said it.
"I'm sorry, Enid, I had no idea," apologised Chris.
"Yeah well, you better hope that Ezra forgives you because I won't. Now if you don't mind leaving." she turned her back on him then and went and sat with Ezra.
Chris left the room with Nathan and Buck and joined Vin in the saloon.
The next morning Chris was sitting in the saloon when Ezra came down the stairs. Chris saw that he had his arm in a sling. Ezra didn’t see him as he went to the bar to get a drink. Chris joined him there.
"Ezra."
"Chris."
"I'm sorry, Ezra, I should have known better."
"I accept your apology," he lied. He was not in the mood for an argument. He just wanted to get away from him. Maybe when he was feeling better.
"So everything is fine then." Chris hoped as he thought that Ezra accepted his apology a little too quickly.
"It's the same as it always is Chris," said Ezra.
"And how is that Ezra?" he asked.
"Complicated." Ezra took his bottle then and walked away leaving Chris with a confused look on his face.
The End
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