The sudden weight that fell into AJ’s arms caused his knees to buckle and he sank to the dusty ground, Nick’s face and chest turned into his frame. AJ lowered his arms so that he could turn Nick and see his face. Nick’s pale features were slack and his eyes were closed. AJ shook him as he brought him in closer to his chest.
“Kid... Hey, kid,” spoke AJ, his eyes searching for a response. “C’mon, snap out of it.”
AJ looked up when Howie kneeled before him, “What happened?”
“I ran into ‘im as a couple of brutes were hauling him to the livery at gunpoint. We had a bit of a squabble and the kid took a hit,” AJ looked down at the bloody shirt as Howie pulled the vest aside. “He wouldn’t let me see how bad it was. Hell, I had to force him just to come here.”
Howie ripped the blood soaked shirt open, revealing the damage, “He’s lucky. It just winged him, didn’t hit anything vital from what I can tell.” He paused and turned Nick into AJ to look at his back, “Went clean through. He passed out most likely ‘cause of pain and loss of blood. Let’s get him upstairs, I need to take care of the wound.”
AJ nodded and was about to stand when a hand gripped his shoulder. He looked up into a green gaze, “I got ‘im.”
AJ looked the tall man over and then nodded, the man taking Nick’s limp body up into his arms like a child and following Howie’s form up the stairs. AJ remained on the ground, pulling at his shirt which was now stained with Nick’s blood.
“Would you like some assistance in recovering your upright stature?”
AJ’s brow furrowed at the southern words, turning his head up to fix the gambler with a perplexed expression, “Huh?”
Brian smiled, “You need a hand up?”
“Oh,” AJ’s face relaxed. “Sure. Why the hell didn’t you jus’ say that?”
Brian frowned, grasping AJ’s hand and pulling him up, “I did.”
AJ opened his mouth, then closed it and shook his head. He turned and walked to the stairs, just reaching them when the gambler caught up with him.
“My name is Brian Littrell, and you would be...” queried Brian, stepping along side AJ up the stairs.
“AJ McLean.”
Brian thought for a moment as they reached the top step, “Do you know the young man you brought here in such a deplorable state?”
“Nope.”
They reached the clinic doorway and saw Howie leaning over Nick and Kevin leaning against a far wall. Brian addressed AJ again, “You know nothing about him?”
“His name’s Nick Carter.”
Brian slowly nodded then prodded for more information, “Do you always step in and help those in need?”
AJ shrugged and walked to the cot Nick laid on, “Had to.”
Brian’s brow furrowed, “Had to?” Lord, the man was confusingly simple.
“Had to,” repeated AJ, looking down at Nick’s face, “I just had a feelin’ that I had to help him. I don’t usually step into trouble like that.”
Success! More than one sentence! Brian smiled at his thoughts, “I am sure that he is grateful.”
“Grateful? Ha!” AJ stared at Brian. “The damn kid was ‘bout as grateful as a chicken gettin’ its head chopped off!”
Brian took a step back, switching his gaze to Nick, “Indeed?”
AJ shook his head, “That kid is a might angry. At what? I’d say the world.”
Brian frowned and ceased conversation as Howie worked on Nick, having already cleaned the wound and was now stitching it closed. Nick never made a move or sound, just laid still.
AJ stepped forward when Howie straightened, “He gonna be okay?”
“Yeah, he’ll be fine in about a day, but he’ll have to take it easy for a week or two after that. He’s got to build his blood back up and let the wound heal. C’mere and lift him up so’s I can bandage it.” Howie placed a wad of gauze on each wound as AJ lifted him up, then proceeded to wrap a bandage around his torso and over his shoulder to help keep it in place.
“Okay, lay him back down.” Howie told AJ after he tied the bandage off, “He’ll sleep for a while.”
Kevin pushed away from the wall, “You wanna go into more detail of how this happened?”
AJ’s eyes narrowed as he looked Kevin up and down once more, “How ‘bout you tell me your name first.”
Kevin nodded, “Kevin Richardson.”
AJ gave no reaction to the name, “AJ McLean.”
Kevin was slightly surprised that AJ didn’t know who he was, “Well, what happened?”
“Just what I said before,” replied AJ, finding a chair and pulling it to rest beside Nick’s bed before sitting, “I rode into that backwater town and a couple of guys were draggin’ him to the livery. I knew it wasn’t right, what with him fightin’ the whole way. So I confronted them and they got all: ‘You ain’t seen nothin’ and ‘You jus’ walk away’. It was like they were doin’ some organized thing. The guy that talked acted like he was someone important or that what he was doin’ was important.” AJ’s eyebrows narrowed as he stated his speculations, then he shook himself. “Anyways, I pretty much told ‘em they couldn’t take the kid and the talkin’ one started to draw his gun. I shot him in the gun hand and the kid rammed into the other one that had a gun on ‘im. That was when he got shot. I told the two men to get and then I brought the kid here.”
Howie stared at AJ, “Jeez, AJ. That’s the most I’ve ever heard you say at one time.”
AJ shrugged, “Had somethin’ worth sayin’.”
Kevin’s hard green eyes fixed to Nick’s form, “What’s his name?”
“Said it was Nick Carter,” replied AJ.
Kevin’s head shot up to look at AJ, “Carter?”
“Yep.”
Kevin’s eyes returned to Nick, “Thought there was something familiar about him.”
Howie looked at Kevin, “What do you mean?”
“I’ve heard of him. He’s got a name for himself, Kaos Carter. Been in a few tiffs throughout the territories.”
Howie looked thoughtfully at the unconscious youth, “Outlaw?”
“No,” Kevin shook his head. “Jus’ seems to be in the wrong places at the wrong times. He’s had to stick up for himself and without meaning to; he has helped some folks in the process.” Kevin paused in thought, “He’s pretty good.”
Brian stood to one side and took in the information. He wondered if Kevin meant good as in a good person, or good as in he was good at what he did. Brian blinked, then shook his head. Brian removed his hat and joined the others around Nick, “Perhaps this reputation of his is the reason for his recent mistreatment.”
Kevin looked thoughtful, “Maybe. Could be some old run-in of his wanted to settle the score.”
AJ shook his head, “I don’t know. Those guys were takin’ him somewhere and weren’t acting like they wanted him dead.”
AJ leaned back in his chair and looked at Kevin and Brian, then Howie, “So, Howie, how’d you meet up with these two?”
Howie looked slightly embarrassed, “They saved my butt from getting shot to pieces.”
AJ smirked and raised an eyebrow, “Really? And you thought healing would be safer. How’d it happen?”
As Howie told AJ of the three brothers wanting revenge for their father, Brian pondered what AJ just said. When Howie finished speaking, Brian asked, “What was your former occupation, Howie?”
Howie frowned, “I don’t like to talk about it. Its done and over with, I don’t fancy on talkin’ about it again.”
Brian backed off, “I understand. So, how do you and AJ know of each other?”
AJ looked from under the brim of his hat at the Southerner, “You sure like to talk, don’t ya?”
Brian smiled and pulled a deck of cards from his pocket, “Would you rather play a game of chance?”
AJ shook his head, “Howie got me out of a pinch once, been friends ever since.”
“‘Cept I haven’t seen you for over a year,” declared Howie. “Where the hell have you been?”
AJ pulled his hat lower and settled further into the chair, “Around.”
“Around,” repeated Howie, sighing because he knew that would be the extent of what AJ would say on the subject. Howie faced Kevin and Brian, “Well, Nick won’t be awake for a while I expect, so you don’t have to stick around.”
Kevin leaned against the wall once more, “I’m stayin’. I want to know what got the kid in that mess.”
Brian laid his hat on the table, finding a chair and after dusting it off, sat, “I must admit that my curiosity is pricked. I would also like an explanation for what has befallen our young burden.”
Howie stared at Brian, “Don’t you ever speak plain English?”
Brian looked confused, “Have I not been?”
AJ smiled, “Sounds like Japanese or somethin’ to me.”
Kevin smiled as Brian’s face twisted in insult. So, someone can actually frazzle the gambler, he thought. Nice to know.
Brian stared indignantly at AJ, “Just because I have had the proper education, you insult me.”
“Well, hell Brian,” guffawed AJ, his brown eyes twinkling beneath his hat, “Ya don’t need no education to talk.”
“Double negative, Mr. McLean.”
AJ pushed his hat up and stared at the gambler, “Huh?”
“‘Ya don’t need no education’,” quoted Brian, “Correctly stated, it is ‘You don’t need any education’ or ‘You need no education’.”
AJ’s brow furrowed, “That’s just what I said!” Then after a pregnant pause, “Isn’t it?”
Kevin couldn’t keep the laugh in and it burst past his lips in a strangled manner. Brian and AJ’s heads whipped around to see the laughing gunslinger and Howie covering his mouth as his shoulders shook suspiciously. Brian and AJ looked at each other, AJ spoke, “What’s so damn funny?!”
Brian shrugged, then leaned back in his chair and lifted his feet to rest on Nick’s cot, elbows on armrests and fingers steepled over his chest, “Is something amusing, gentlemen?”
“You two,” gasped Kevin as his laughter was brought under control. He couldn’t remember the last time he had laughed like that.
Brian raised an eyebrow and glanced at AJ, “Us?”
Howie snickered, “You just should’ve seen you two. You were fightin’ about how to talk for God’s sake!”
AJ smirked, “‘Spose that would be ‘amusing’, huh Bri’?”
Brian raised an eyebrow, “Bri’?”
“Yeah, Bri’. I like it, don’t you?” asked AJ.
Brian just raised his other eyebrow and chose not to comment. Howie shook his head and went about cleaning and putting away his stuff. Kevin continued to lean against the wall with arms crossed and head bowed low, a smirk still present on his face. Brian busied himself by shuffling his cards in intricate patterns, performing slight of hand, and card tricks. AJ was slumped back in the chair with his hat pulled so low over his face that he appeared to be sleeping, when in reality his dark eyes were intently watching the gambler perform his talents. This is how they were found several hours later, the sun having arisen into the sky in the cause of mid morning.
AJ’s eyes began to droop and he soon fell into what his appearance projected. Only to be jerked awake immediately as a groan sounded from the figure on the cot. AJ sat up and removed his hat to reveal his wild dark hair. He looked down on the awakening Nick.
Another groan, louder this time as he move slightly. Kevin, Howie, and Brian were all at attention now, surrounding the bed. They watched as Nick’s head moved to the side and then back again, his eyelids fluttering before going still once more.
“C’mon, kid,” urged AJ. “Time to wake up.”
AJ’s voice seemed to have an effect on Nick, his eyes slowly opening and blinking rapidly to try and focus. Nick’s face was still pale and sweat glistened on his skin because of his slight fever from the gunshot wound.
Nick felt like he was floating in water, numb until a burning pain appeared in his right side. When it didn’t go away, Nick groaned. He tried to weakly move away from the pain, but this only caused it to worsen and he groaned again. A soft, low voice spoke to him. It called him kid and told him to wake up. Pete? Nick silently asked. Nick felt his head lifted and a cup pressed against his lips, cool liquid flowing out and down his dry throat. When it left he forced his eyes open and was greeted with one big blur. He blinked, his surroundings beginning to focus and Nick looked for Pete.
No Pete. He should have known that though, Pete’s dead. Nick didn’t like what he did see before him though; four strange faces stared down at him, surrounding him. What the hell? Who the hell are these guys? And what am I doin’ here... What do they want? Nick’s eyes widened in fear of the unknown and he gripped the material he laid on, trying to push away from the strange men around him.
Howie saw the fear flash through the fevered blue eyes and quickly tried to reassure the young man, “Hey, its okay. We ain’t goin’ to hurt you. Understand? We ain’t goin’ to hurt you.”
Nick repeated what Howie said in his mind, gradually accepting it. He didn’t really have a choice. They could hurt him if they wanted, but they hadn’t yet. Maybe he’s tellin’ the truth. Nick took a deep breath, wincing when pain shot through his side. He couldn’t remember what happened, his mind was foggy.
AJ laid a hand on Nick’s arm, ignoring the flinch, “You were shot, kid. Do you remember?”
Nick looked at AJ and felt his normal anger and reproach return. He glared at AJ, “I ain’t no kid. No, I don’t remember, and who the hell are you?”
AJ sighed, the pleasant attitude was back. “I am the guy that saved your ass, AJ McLean.”
Nick sneered. AJ continued, “That man in black there is Kevin Richardson,” AJ saw Nick tense, “The fancy one is Brian Littrell and that there is Howie Dorough, he patched you up.”
Nick cast suspicious eyes on each of them, his gaze showing the smallest glimmer of thanks when on Howie. “I’m Nick Carter. Am I gonna be okay?”
Howie smiled, “Yeah, given a day’s rest. You have a slight fever, but I expected that and you’ll be sleepy because of all the blood you lost.”
“Okay then, I’m outta here,” Nick forced himself into a sitting position and began to swing his legs off the bed when Howie pushed him back down.
“You ain’t goin’ nowhere,” he said sternly.
Teeth clenched, Nick glared up at Howie, “To hell I ain’t. You can’t tell me what to do.”
AJ clapped Nick upside the head lightly, “Listen to him, Nick. You jus’ might learn somethin’.”
Nick’s eyes widened, staring blankly. ...You jus’ might learn somethin’... ...You jus’ might learn somethin’... Nick gasped as his memory came back in a rush, the two men grabbing him in the alley, AJ showing up to help him, getting shot, the ride... All of this assaulted Nick’s mind at once, breaking through the fog. He finally registered his name being called.
“Nick! ... Nick! Will ya snap out of it?!” yelled AJ. Nick had just spaced out, “Nick!”
“Yeah! Will ya shut up?!” Nick cried, shrugging AJ’s hands off of his shoulders. “I remember now.”
AJ glanced at the others, “What made it come back to ya?”
“What you said, ‘You might learn somethin’.”
The light went on in AJ’s eyes, “I said that to those two guys.”
Nick nodded. Kevin spoke for the first time and AJ couldn’t help but notice how Nick paid attention to every word.
“Do you know why it happened, Nick? Why they were takin’ you like that?”
“No idea. All's I know is one minute I’m walkin’ down the alley, the next my arm is twisted behind my back and a gun is jabbed in my side,” Nick grimaced from both memory and a twinge of pain in his side. “Something about it didn’t feel right though, you know what I mean?”
Brian nodded and stroked his chin, “You had a suspicion that the miscreants that accosted you had ulterior motives as to the reason you were being abducted.”
Nick stared at Brian, “Ummm... yeah.” Then he muttered to AJ, “What the hell kind of language was that?”
AJ broke out laughing while Brian rolled his eyes, “I mean that you believe that the men attacking you had other reasons for taking you.”
“Oh, okay. In that case, yeah.” Nick actually smiled; the exasperated gambler couldn’t help but smile back.
Kevin’s level voice wiped the smiles away, “You don’t have any idea why this happened?”
“No,” stated Nick, avoiding Kevin’s icy gaze, “I know their names though. The young one was called Mac and the older basterd’s name was Branson.”
Kevin stiffened, “Branson?”
Nick nodded, his eyelids suddenly feeling heavy while his faint headache intensified. He relaxed back into the soft cot, feeling overwhelmingly sleepy.
Howie smiled down at him, “See? I told you that you were stayin’ right here. You get some sleep, we’ll look out for ya.”
Nick blinked at Howie’s last words, but his eyes soon fell closed and he was asleep. Howie turned to the others, “Why don’t you get out of here for a while, he needs his rest. One of us can stay with him. The rest go.”
Kevin didn’t hear a word he said, his eyes having a far away look to them. He didn’t say a word as he abruptly turned and left the room. Howie, AJ, and Brian watched him leave. Howie blinked, “I guess that leaves one of us.”
“I’ll stay,” said AJ, once again settling back in his chair. “You go get some sleep, Howie. You were up this whole time, you’re beat.”
Howie nodded, “Yeah, you come and get me though if he wakes up.”
AJ nodded, “Go.”
Howie left the room and headed to the bunking house. Brian retrieved his cards from where they were laid out in a game of solitaire on the table, stopping to address AJ, “I think I shall go see what is amiss with Kevin.”
AJ didn’t raise his head as he said, “You’ll be playin’ with fire.”
“I know,” sighed Brian, fitting his hat onto his head, “But I don’t think he will come to any... violent repercussions.”
“Why’s that?” asked AJ, curious.
Brian walked to the door before stopping and answering in a low voice, “I’m the only family he has left.”
Brian found Kevin immediately, having gone straight to the saloon. Kevin already sat with a half empty bottle of red-eye. Brian took a deep breath before closing the distance and sitting across from the obviously troubled man.
“You have wasted no time, I see,” stated Brian, gesturing to the bottle.
Kevin shrugged, taking another swig.
Brian bit his lip, thinking on how to proceed, “What happened? What has made you look to the singular inspirations of inebriated bliss?”
“Damn it, Brian,” swore Kevin, “Will you jus’ speak plain for once?”
“What has caused you to return to the bottle so fast?”
“Somethin’ the kid said.”
Brian frowned, wondering what he missed, “What?”
Kevin’s only answer was another swig of red-eye, then Kevin placed it back on the table. Brian sighed, “Come on, Kevin. You can talk to me.”
Kevin stared at the bottle as he rotated it with his fingers, “You know about my past, right?”
Brian nodded.
Kevin’s eyes narrowed as he glared at the bottle before him, “Branson was one of the men that killed my father and damn near me, too.”
