Twigs snapped as the bandit tried to put space between him and the rider closing in on him. He tripped over a root and the man pulled his mount to a stop. The fallen tried standing but a bullet pierced his leg and he let out a cry of pain.

"Move again and I won't miss your head."

The band rolled onto his side and said "Just let me go."

"Can't do that."

"I never harmed you!"

"You stepped onto my property."

The wounded man held his knee and rocked back and forth in agony. Champ shook his head and his ears went up. Reese turned to his stallion and scanned the surrounding woods. Another twig snapped and he heard guns being set. Slowly the remaining bandits showed themselves and he watched one of them help their brother up.

"Drop the gun."

His amber eyes narrowed and he said "You first."

Another man smirked and said "This is going to be well worth jail time."

He let out a low grunt and the main bandit stepped back. The others closed in and he avoided most of the punches. Some struck his ribs and one low shot to his stomach drove him to his knees. Looking up slowly, he spat out a mouthful of blood and the wounded bandit chuckled.

"This is too easy."

"I agree. I thought your reputation was right about you."

"And what is that?"

"You are the best of your class."

He heard the other men begin to laugh and pulled out his gun. He emptied shots into all but the two main bandits and watched their bodies collapse into the damp ground. The main guy set his gun and Reese pulled himself up into the saddle. He put a bullet into the original prey and drove Champ through the mound of corpses. One last shot sounded as the bullet went through his shoulder and he tightened his grip on the reins in his hand.

Champ raced through the thick woods and his vision began to blur as the blood loss weakend him. They jumped a creek and his boot came loose. Trying to hold himself upright, he fell to the ground and the stallion continued onward. The impact left him breathless and he rolled onto his side. Holding his wounded shoulder, he crawled toward some underbrush and sat up against a tree trunk.

The warm blood on his skin was soaking through his dark shirt and he positioned his gun in his functional hand. Removing the safety, he took deep breaths and watched for any pursuers. Slowly his eyes grew too heavy to keep open and he felt the weakening state pull him under.

Running his hand along the soft skin, he watched her brown eyes open and the soft smile capture her face. The sun rested in her brown hair and he felt her rest her head on his chest.

"Morning."

"Sleep well?"

She smirked and he kissed her brow. Glancing at the clock on the wall by the door, he took a deep breath and she felt him carefully sit up.

"We better get going if you want to make your meeting."

She stretched her tired muscles and sat up. Watching him dress, her eyes left a warm sensation on his skin and he looked back at her. He tossed her some clean clothes and watched her skillfully dress while still in bed.

"What are you going to do while I'm gone?"

"Make sure my will is on record."

She laughed and slid out of bed. He watched her pull her hair back and she slid into her boots. The laces were tied quickly and he watched her grab her room key.

"I thought you were capable of handling my brothers."

"It's not them that will kill me."

She smiled and he pulled her to him. He kissed her with a promising hunger and she slowly pulled back. He watched her grab her jacket and open the door.

Champ's running hooves echoed ahead of him and Bear's ears went up. He lifted his head from his spot on the porch and stood up. Joe stopped talking with Jeff and saw him step down onto the driveway. She followed his tail of sight and saw the stallion burst free from the woods.

"Reese."

Shoving the paperwork into her brother's hands, she followed Bear toward the running stallion and heard her brother yelling after her. When she reached Champ, she caught his bridle and pulled him to a stop. Looking over the quivering stallion, she saw the altered saddle and the dried on blood spots resting on his neck.

"Joe!"

Grabbing his saddle, she fixed it atop his back again, and quickly adjusted the straps.

"Joe!"

Ignoring her brother, she climbed into the saddle and took up the free reins.

"Joe!"

Looking up, she found Jeff approaching and yelled "Follow me!"

She whirled the stallion around and he drove back into the woods. Bear ran along side tracking and when he pulled up ahead, she urged Champ faster. The stallion was breathing hard, pushed past his limits, and she felt the uneasiness settling in. Hearing rapidly approaching hooves from behind her, she glanced over her shoulder and saw Jeff and Billy tear into view. They followed her until they came upon the dead bodies and she jerked Champ to a halt.

"What the hell happened here?"

She dropped to her knee and looked at one of the fallen men. Studying his position on the ground, she knew it had been an instant death and rolled him over. Seeing the family mark on his forearm, she stepped back and her brothers joined her.

"Know them?"

"The Long Brothers."

"This isn't all of them."

"No this isn't. Two of them are already dead."

"Dead?"

"Remember the ambush in the ravine?"

Jeff nodded and asked "Weren't there two of them?"

"I shot him before the cave in but the other one got away."

"How do you know that two of them are dead?"

"One of them attacked Calli and I killed him."

Billy sighed and said "That still doesn't account for the remaining brothers."

"No but I do know at least two of them are in custody."

Jeff shook his head and opened his mouth to talk when Bear gave a bark. They mounted the horses again and followed the coon hound as he tracked a scent. When he stopped, she pulled Champ to a halt and jumped to the ground. Bear looked back at her and she quietly joined him. He nudged the limp arm in view and she brushed the amber hair away from the man's face.

Quickly she felt for a pulse and felt some of the tension loosen when she picked it up.

"Who is it?"

She ran her hand along his face and felt the warmth settling in. She checked his pockets and spotted the gun sitting in his hand. Grabbing it, she found him holding it with a death grip.

"Joe?"

Looking up, she found her older brothers watching her and she said "Help me get him onto Champ."

Jeff just stared at her and Billy knelt beside her.

"He doesn't look good."

"I have to get him back to the house. He's getting a fever."

"He's alive?"

The surprised tone drew a skeptical look from her and she turned to Jeff. The man sighed with a curse and helped Billy lift the man to his feet.

"How are we going to get him there? He's not even conscious."

"Put him on Champ. I can get us back quicker."

"Joe, you aren't strong enough to handle him and his horse."

She climbed into the saddle and said "I don't have a choice. We need to clean up this area and get him home."

"Joe."

"He'll die if we don't."

Jeff turned to Billy and the man slowly nodded. Shaking his head, the two helped position the man on Champ and she wrapped the reins around one wrist. Jeff secured one leg in the stirrup so Reese wouldn't slip and Billy secured the straps to the saddle.

"Be careful."

She nodded and dug her knees into Champ's sides. She could feel her brothers watching her as she disappeared into the woods but right now all she could think about was keeping this man alive. Bear led the way back home and when they left the woods, she felt some tension lift again. Cliff was waiting at the barn and caught the stallion's bridle as they came in. He freed Reese and she hopped down.

"What happened?"

"I don't know."

Champ lingered by the barn doors as the two helped move Reese into the house and up the stairs into a guest room. Carefully he was lowered onto the bed and she removed the stained shirt.

"That looks back."

"That won't be what kills him."

"What do you need?"

"My kit."

He left the room and she tugged the boots off the man. Putting them on the floor, she walked into a small private bathroom and started the sink faucet. She let the water warm as she dug out a cloth and soaked it. Returning to the bed, she sat down next to the man and ran the cloth over of the bullet wound. The bleeding was slowing down but she had no idea how long he had been bleeding before Champ reached her.

"Damn it Reese."

She took his gun from her waist line and set it on the bedside table. Cliff returned finally with her kit and helped her clean the wound and stitch it shut. The bleeding didn't worsen but it didn't want to clot easily either. She sowed the wound shut slowly and wrapped the entire shoulder to protect it as it healed.

"How bad is it Joe?"

"He has a fever. We'll have to wait it out."

Cliff watched her take the cloth back into the bathroom and rinse it out. She switched the tap to cold water and brought it back into the room. Sitting next to the man, she ran the cold cloth over his face and her brother couldn't take his eyes off her. He had always known she had a gentle touch with her patients but none of them had been a human. A knock drew him out of his thoughts and he watched Jeff and Billy enter.

"Is he going to live?"

The annoyed tone didn't surprise anyone but Cliff didn't miss the sharp look she shot the man. Right now getting the fever broken was the only thing important and everyone was going to have to put their personal feelings aside.

"Do you want me to go get Doc?"

She shook her head and said "If it doesn't break by tomorrow night, I'll go."

Billy glanced at Jeff and then at Cliff. Each of them didn't like what was happening but there was no way they were going to be able to change her mind. Reese had always been part of their lives but all three of them held some level of resentment for the man since the split took place seven years ago.

"I'll go get some food on the table."

Jeff left the room seething and Billy sighed "This is going to be a problem."

He followed the older sibling out of the hall and Cliff looked back at his sister. She was aware of the drama building in the room and fully understood it was being centered on her and the man lying on the bed beside her. He watched her put the problems yet to come aside as she tended to the illness and injury.

"Do you need anything?"

She looked up at him and asked "Is there any way we can erase the past?"

He sadily shook his head and she sighed "Then I guess I don't."

"If you do, just holler down the stairs."

She watched him leave the room and looked back at Reese. The man looked horriblly ill and she knew it wasn't just from being shot. Why he was out in the woods and how he was involved in the shooting she didn't want to know. She just needed to know he would pull through. Running her fingers through his hair, she took a deep breath and tucked a lock of blonde hair behind his ear.

"Just when I think we won't see each other again you fall right back into my lap."

She continued to run the cloth over his face, getting it wet in the bathroom when necessary, and unaware of the prescence outside the door. Jeff lingered in the hall studying her, listening to quiet things she said as she worked on calming his fever. Closing his eyes, he leaned his head back against the wall and bit back the groan he had been fighting back since that name passed her lips this afternoon. Everything was going to get worse when Will got back and he wasn't sure if she was going to be able to hold herself together, especially since she was still drawn to the blonde man she was watching over.