Hello, All! Thank-you again for the super replies to this story. Here's another chapter. Please let me know what you think. Writing for you and reading the
replies keeps the imagination alive and the story going. Have a great Wednesday! Christy
Chapter 7
During the night, screams woke the house. Heath sat bolt up right in bed, recognizing the source at once. On instinct he stumbled out of his own restless sleep into the hallway, replete in his nightshirt and tousled hair. After just a few feet, he threw open Nick's door, hardly surprised to find Nick's bed empty. Turning up the wick on the dimmed lamp shuddering at the now quieter sobs coming from an unidentified place, he came face to face with Jarrod.
"Counselor," Heath greeted. He tried not to stare at the lawyer who wore a robe over his nightshirt with warm slippers and hair that probably had a comb whipped through it despite the urgency of Nick's plight. Jarrod gave Heath a warm smile taking control of his sibling as always.
"Heath. I can handle this," Pappy assured Nick's blond friend. "It isn't the first time he's had nightmares."
"I can help," Heath stated, giving no room for argument. "If I can find him."
"In the closet," Jarrod offered. Heath's light baby blues widened with appreciation. Together the men opened the closed door only to hear a howl from Nick crouching on the floor with his nightshirt pulled beneath him.
"NO! STOP! LEAVE ME ALONE. DON'T TOUCH ME. HELP HIM. HEATH! HEATH! NO MOTHER YA CAN'T BE HERE. IT AINT RIGHT. HEATH!" Jarrod gave the blond a rather sheepish expression.
"He always calls for you. I think you are correct. You may be the only one to help."
"I been where he is…lots a times. Reckon he needs someone knows what he's going through," Heath concluded. Kneeling down on the wood floor, the teenaged boy who was a man before his time kept his distance, allowing his voice to provide the relief Nick craved.
"Nick…Nick…" Heath started. Sitting in the closet, the big man appeared childlike, his face reflecting his fear, his hazel eyes wide and his words giving away memories Heath shared. Jarrod stood by, waiting, watching and praying for his brother and Heath at the same time.
"It's hot!" Nick exclaimed. "So hot. I can't get away. Heath. Mother help him. He's dying. It's hot. Hot. Hot." Nick's torment was searing to Heath as memories flooded him. Shivering he was relieved to have Jarrod touch his shoulder with a grip that kept him grounded in reality. Screwing up his courage he reached out to the man he called friend and brother even before he knew their true relationship.
"Lieutenant," Heath called. "We aint in the iron box now. Yer safe."
"No. No. We are not safe," Nick hissed grabbing Heath's wrists, his eyes wild now. "LET US OUT!I gotta git the boy out. Dontcha get it? We are baking alive. GIMMIE THE KEY." Jarrod moved to help Heath. Shaking his head, Heath was quick to handle the bigger man with a commanding voice that once more surprised Jarrod.
"LIEUTENANT," he ordered. "There is no key. We are not in Carterson. We're safe at yer ranch. Yer having a dream. WAKE UP! WAKE UP! LIEUTENANT, I SAID!" Jarrod couldn't believe what he was hearing. Heath sounded…he sounded just like Victoria Barkley…just like his mother.
"Heath," Victoria's first born breathed. Heath gave Jarrod an impatient look, shushing him with his gaze before returning to Nick who was now staring at the blond kneeling in front of him.
"Corporal?"
"Yeah, Lieutenant. It's me, who else?"
"Corporal," Nick repeated blinking his eyes, looking around as if still half asleep. Leaning forward, Heath helped the dignified Nick out of the small compartment back to a settee by the large fireplace. This room, like Audra's personalized its occupant. A large airy chamber filled with possessions gathered over a lifetime. Heath could feel his brother's life coursing through his veins in this room, an fact he would hold dear forever he was sure.
"Heath?" Nick wondered. "Pappy?"
"We are both here, Nick," Jarrod assured his younger brother with evident relief. Heath poured a glass of water from a porcelain pitcher set up on Nick's dresser where a delicate linen covered the wood with the initials VB inscribed on the lower right edge. Heath felt his heart quicken at the initials. Nick's mother…his mother…Nick was living through the hell of Carterson still…and now the loss of his mother. It wasn't right, he protested in silence before returning to the two older men. Nick took the glass with trembling hand, drinking the water before handing it back to Heath with a grateful voice.
"Thanks, Heath. I guess…I needed that. Brandy might a been better."
"You need to think a little more clearly first, Nick," Heath said. "That was some dream."
"Yer telling me," Nick agreed. Sinking into the settee next to Nick, Jarrod breathed a sigh of relief.
"Nick, those nightmares are frightening. Were you in the iron box again?"
"Me? Yeah, I guess. But this time Heath was with me."
"With ya?" Heath exclaimed. "Nick them boxes is scarcely big enough for one man much less two. Ya crazy?" The boy's voice held a hint of his teasing laugh to which Nick pounced.
"I aint crazy. I know what I felt. What's the matter with you?"
"Nick, I was kidding," Heath defended with a lopsided grin. Nick's paw patted Heath's knee in ready forgiveness.
"Brat," Nick ground out fondly. "Thanks, Heath. I sure am glad yer here and not in that box. I am sorry about waking you and Jarrod up."
"I wasn't sleeping anyway," Heath fibbed. "Got nuthin better ta do."
"Really?" Nick countered. "Pappy, did ya ever see such a smooth liar?"
"Sure did Brother Nick. I am looking at him," Jarrod teased. Heath's laugh rang out loud. Nick scowled.
"Ya know, Heath, having my brother give me a hard time is one thing. Having my best friend join him is another."
"Too bad, Lieutenant. Gotta have me some fun sometime," Heath grinned before his expression took on Nick's pain. "Ya…ya been having them nightmares much?"
"No…not lately," Nick admitted.
"What set it off?" Jarrod wondered. Nick gave Jarrod a withering look, the lawyer reading his brother before coming to his conclusion.
"Mother. You were thinking of Mother."
"I…yeah I guess. She…she…I was dreaming about her I think. I can't really remember. Just…she was in front of me and suddenly I was in the box with Heath." Nick's eyes met Jarrod's before they rested on Heath in genuine puzzlement.
"It was the strangest thing. We were both in the iron box and would ya believe Mother was there? She was there just like…just like during the war…when I really was in that God forsaken box, and all I had was an image of her to keep me from losing it, only this time she was taking care of both of us. She seemed ta know ya Heath. Ya were dying and I couldn't git ya out. I couldn't…and I was sure we were both going ta suffocate in that box."
"More like a hell hole," Heath grumbled unable to hold back his own nightmares of the hours, which nearly stole his life and his sanity. Jarrod shook his head.
"You two make me think twice about being here with you," he commented. Heath's blue eyes snapped to the counselor.
"What do ya mean?"
"I have a feeling that but for a miracle, either of you might have died out there in Carterson maybe afterward. Heath, I sure am glad you were with Brother Nick. He's said more than once you saved his life. I'm kinda of partial to him…and I am glad he was with you."
"Well, I reckon I'm partial ta Nick too, Mr. Lawyerman. For being a tough nosed Lieutenant, he grows on ya easy. Did on me anyway."
"Enough reminiscing," Nick growled obviously coming back to himself. "It's late. We got a ranch ta run. Heath, tomorrow I can introduce ya to the men."
"Nick, Father might want us to stay close to home," Jarrod intervened standing to leave the room. Nick stood with a sigh.
"I aint going out on the range, Jarrod. There's plenty ta do right here, starting with breaking that stallion. Heath excels at that kinda thing."
"Come by it naturally," Heath admitted before patting Heath's shoulder. "Ya all right Lieutenant?"
"Yeah, I guess, thanks ta you and Jarrod. Helps ta have brothers and good friends," Nick complimented. Heath's heart constricted. Was now the time to tell Nick the truth? No…no Nick was too fragile for that. His mother was just buried…their mother…just laid in the ground. He managed a grin but not before Nick picked up on his hesitation.
"How bout you, Buddy. Ya aint having nightmares are ya?"
"Nah…not too much," Heath hastened. "I better git back ta sleep if I'm gonna be up with the dawn. Glad I could be of help, Nick." Heath beat a hasty retreat. Outside the door, he couldn't help overhearing the brothers.
"Brother Nick, are you sure you're all right?" Jarrod repeated Nick's response was typically gruff.
"Hell no," he admitted. "But Heath don't need that. He's got enough of his own nightmares."
"I can imagine."
"No, ya can't Pappy, not when it comes ta Carterson."
"Maybe not, Nick, but if you're having nightmares about Mother, I can appreciate how you feel," the lawyer assured him. "By the way I owe you some thanks myself."
"For what?" Jarrod's wry chuckle was quite a bit like Nick when Nick was feeling a little abashed and grateful at the same time Heath thought.
"I wasn't exactly myself tonight, Brother Nick."
"I wouldn't sweat it," Nick answered. "None of us are ourselves. We're in this together, Pappy. Of all people ya know that. In case ya didn't know it, I am partial ta you too."
"Glad to hear it," Jarrod chuckled. Heath heard footsteps. He could imagine Nick's bear hug comforting both men. Heath was about to return to his room, relieved his brothers were able to help each other, only sorry he could not tell them how vested he was in their lives and their mother's loss when he heard Jarrod go on.
"Nick, would you mind if I slept in here tonight? I guess I don't really feel like being alone." Heath didn't have to stay to hear Nick's answer. Jarrod and Nick would get through the night together…sharing the sorrow only two brothers who had lost their mother could understand, a sorrow they couldn't know Heath appreciated with them. The blond walked on down the hall further satisfied to catch a glimpse of Tom Barkley's hand as it shut Audra's bedroom door. Tom Barkley would watch over his daughter this night. Heath was glad his brothers and sister weren't alone. Shutting his own bedroom door, he dared to believe that someday, somehow he would have the courage to tell his family who he really was…and then he wouldn't be alone either.
Chapter 7
During the night, screams woke the house. Heath sat bolt up right in bed, recognizing the source at once. On instinct he stumbled out of his own restless sleep into the hallway, replete in his nightshirt and tousled hair. After just a few feet, he threw open Nick's door, hardly surprised to find Nick's bed empty. Turning up the wick on the dimmed lamp shuddering at the now quieter sobs coming from an unidentified place, he came face to face with Jarrod.
"Counselor," Heath greeted. He tried not to stare at the lawyer who wore a robe over his nightshirt with warm slippers and hair that probably had a comb whipped through it despite the urgency of Nick's plight. Jarrod gave Heath a warm smile taking control of his sibling as always.
"Heath. I can handle this," Pappy assured Nick's blond friend. "It isn't the first time he's had nightmares."
"I can help," Heath stated, giving no room for argument. "If I can find him."
"In the closet," Jarrod offered. Heath's light baby blues widened with appreciation. Together the men opened the closed door only to hear a howl from Nick crouching on the floor with his nightshirt pulled beneath him.
"NO! STOP! LEAVE ME ALONE. DON'T TOUCH ME. HELP HIM. HEATH! HEATH! NO MOTHER YA CAN'T BE HERE. IT AINT RIGHT. HEATH!" Jarrod gave the blond a rather sheepish expression.
"He always calls for you. I think you are correct. You may be the only one to help."
"I been where he is…lots a times. Reckon he needs someone knows what he's going through," Heath concluded. Kneeling down on the wood floor, the teenaged boy who was a man before his time kept his distance, allowing his voice to provide the relief Nick craved.
"Nick…Nick…" Heath started. Sitting in the closet, the big man appeared childlike, his face reflecting his fear, his hazel eyes wide and his words giving away memories Heath shared. Jarrod stood by, waiting, watching and praying for his brother and Heath at the same time.
"It's hot!" Nick exclaimed. "So hot. I can't get away. Heath. Mother help him. He's dying. It's hot. Hot. Hot." Nick's torment was searing to Heath as memories flooded him. Shivering he was relieved to have Jarrod touch his shoulder with a grip that kept him grounded in reality. Screwing up his courage he reached out to the man he called friend and brother even before he knew their true relationship.
"Lieutenant," Heath called. "We aint in the iron box now. Yer safe."
"No. No. We are not safe," Nick hissed grabbing Heath's wrists, his eyes wild now. "LET US OUT!I gotta git the boy out. Dontcha get it? We are baking alive. GIMMIE THE KEY." Jarrod moved to help Heath. Shaking his head, Heath was quick to handle the bigger man with a commanding voice that once more surprised Jarrod.
"LIEUTENANT," he ordered. "There is no key. We are not in Carterson. We're safe at yer ranch. Yer having a dream. WAKE UP! WAKE UP! LIEUTENANT, I SAID!" Jarrod couldn't believe what he was hearing. Heath sounded…he sounded just like Victoria Barkley…just like his mother.
"Heath," Victoria's first born breathed. Heath gave Jarrod an impatient look, shushing him with his gaze before returning to Nick who was now staring at the blond kneeling in front of him.
"Corporal?"
"Yeah, Lieutenant. It's me, who else?"
"Corporal," Nick repeated blinking his eyes, looking around as if still half asleep. Leaning forward, Heath helped the dignified Nick out of the small compartment back to a settee by the large fireplace. This room, like Audra's personalized its occupant. A large airy chamber filled with possessions gathered over a lifetime. Heath could feel his brother's life coursing through his veins in this room, an fact he would hold dear forever he was sure.
"Heath?" Nick wondered. "Pappy?"
"We are both here, Nick," Jarrod assured his younger brother with evident relief. Heath poured a glass of water from a porcelain pitcher set up on Nick's dresser where a delicate linen covered the wood with the initials VB inscribed on the lower right edge. Heath felt his heart quicken at the initials. Nick's mother…his mother…Nick was living through the hell of Carterson still…and now the loss of his mother. It wasn't right, he protested in silence before returning to the two older men. Nick took the glass with trembling hand, drinking the water before handing it back to Heath with a grateful voice.
"Thanks, Heath. I guess…I needed that. Brandy might a been better."
"You need to think a little more clearly first, Nick," Heath said. "That was some dream."
"Yer telling me," Nick agreed. Sinking into the settee next to Nick, Jarrod breathed a sigh of relief.
"Nick, those nightmares are frightening. Were you in the iron box again?"
"Me? Yeah, I guess. But this time Heath was with me."
"With ya?" Heath exclaimed. "Nick them boxes is scarcely big enough for one man much less two. Ya crazy?" The boy's voice held a hint of his teasing laugh to which Nick pounced.
"I aint crazy. I know what I felt. What's the matter with you?"
"Nick, I was kidding," Heath defended with a lopsided grin. Nick's paw patted Heath's knee in ready forgiveness.
"Brat," Nick ground out fondly. "Thanks, Heath. I sure am glad yer here and not in that box. I am sorry about waking you and Jarrod up."
"I wasn't sleeping anyway," Heath fibbed. "Got nuthin better ta do."
"Really?" Nick countered. "Pappy, did ya ever see such a smooth liar?"
"Sure did Brother Nick. I am looking at him," Jarrod teased. Heath's laugh rang out loud. Nick scowled.
"Ya know, Heath, having my brother give me a hard time is one thing. Having my best friend join him is another."
"Too bad, Lieutenant. Gotta have me some fun sometime," Heath grinned before his expression took on Nick's pain. "Ya…ya been having them nightmares much?"
"No…not lately," Nick admitted.
"What set it off?" Jarrod wondered. Nick gave Jarrod a withering look, the lawyer reading his brother before coming to his conclusion.
"Mother. You were thinking of Mother."
"I…yeah I guess. She…she…I was dreaming about her I think. I can't really remember. Just…she was in front of me and suddenly I was in the box with Heath." Nick's eyes met Jarrod's before they rested on Heath in genuine puzzlement.
"It was the strangest thing. We were both in the iron box and would ya believe Mother was there? She was there just like…just like during the war…when I really was in that God forsaken box, and all I had was an image of her to keep me from losing it, only this time she was taking care of both of us. She seemed ta know ya Heath. Ya were dying and I couldn't git ya out. I couldn't…and I was sure we were both going ta suffocate in that box."
"More like a hell hole," Heath grumbled unable to hold back his own nightmares of the hours, which nearly stole his life and his sanity. Jarrod shook his head.
"You two make me think twice about being here with you," he commented. Heath's blue eyes snapped to the counselor.
"What do ya mean?"
"I have a feeling that but for a miracle, either of you might have died out there in Carterson maybe afterward. Heath, I sure am glad you were with Brother Nick. He's said more than once you saved his life. I'm kinda of partial to him…and I am glad he was with you."
"Well, I reckon I'm partial ta Nick too, Mr. Lawyerman. For being a tough nosed Lieutenant, he grows on ya easy. Did on me anyway."
"Enough reminiscing," Nick growled obviously coming back to himself. "It's late. We got a ranch ta run. Heath, tomorrow I can introduce ya to the men."
"Nick, Father might want us to stay close to home," Jarrod intervened standing to leave the room. Nick stood with a sigh.
"I aint going out on the range, Jarrod. There's plenty ta do right here, starting with breaking that stallion. Heath excels at that kinda thing."
"Come by it naturally," Heath admitted before patting Heath's shoulder. "Ya all right Lieutenant?"
"Yeah, I guess, thanks ta you and Jarrod. Helps ta have brothers and good friends," Nick complimented. Heath's heart constricted. Was now the time to tell Nick the truth? No…no Nick was too fragile for that. His mother was just buried…their mother…just laid in the ground. He managed a grin but not before Nick picked up on his hesitation.
"How bout you, Buddy. Ya aint having nightmares are ya?"
"Nah…not too much," Heath hastened. "I better git back ta sleep if I'm gonna be up with the dawn. Glad I could be of help, Nick." Heath beat a hasty retreat. Outside the door, he couldn't help overhearing the brothers.
"Brother Nick, are you sure you're all right?" Jarrod repeated Nick's response was typically gruff.
"Hell no," he admitted. "But Heath don't need that. He's got enough of his own nightmares."
"I can imagine."
"No, ya can't Pappy, not when it comes ta Carterson."
"Maybe not, Nick, but if you're having nightmares about Mother, I can appreciate how you feel," the lawyer assured him. "By the way I owe you some thanks myself."
"For what?" Jarrod's wry chuckle was quite a bit like Nick when Nick was feeling a little abashed and grateful at the same time Heath thought.
"I wasn't exactly myself tonight, Brother Nick."
"I wouldn't sweat it," Nick answered. "None of us are ourselves. We're in this together, Pappy. Of all people ya know that. In case ya didn't know it, I am partial ta you too."
"Glad to hear it," Jarrod chuckled. Heath heard footsteps. He could imagine Nick's bear hug comforting both men. Heath was about to return to his room, relieved his brothers were able to help each other, only sorry he could not tell them how vested he was in their lives and their mother's loss when he heard Jarrod go on.
"Nick, would you mind if I slept in here tonight? I guess I don't really feel like being alone." Heath didn't have to stay to hear Nick's answer. Jarrod and Nick would get through the night together…sharing the sorrow only two brothers who had lost their mother could understand, a sorrow they couldn't know Heath appreciated with them. The blond walked on down the hall further satisfied to catch a glimpse of Tom Barkley's hand as it shut Audra's bedroom door. Tom Barkley would watch over his daughter this night. Heath was glad his brothers and sister weren't alone. Shutting his own bedroom door, he dared to believe that someday, somehow he would have the courage to tell his family who he really was…and then he wouldn't be alone either.
