The long ride away from the outlaw camp tired both Joshua and Nathan. When they covered several miles, Joshua felt it was safe enough to stop and sleep for at least a couple of hours. He was concerned about Nathan. The youngster probably hadn’t had a decent night’s rest.

Joshua closed his eyes for a moment when suddenly he heard a branch snap. He reached for his gun but was stopped by a male voice.

"Hold it! Don’t try it!" Jimmy approached Joshua and kicked the gun away from Joshua’s reach.

"Mister, I don’t mean the boy any harm." Joshua said, holding up his hands. Teaspoon and Buck walked over to where Nathan slept. Buck gently woke the boy. "Nathan, wake up."

When he opened his eyes he was surprised to see Buck . With a big smile he hugged the express rider. Nathan looked at Jimmy holding a gun at Joshua.

[He is my friend] Nathan signed.

"Teaspoon? Buck, Jimmy?" A female voice captured everyone’s attention. It was Lou and Ike. They rode their horses through the thick brush, ducking from the low lying branches.

"I thought you two were at the station." Teaspoon said

"The more folks it takes to get Nathan back, the better," Lou answered. "Cody and Noah are running the mail, while Kid is helping Rachel take care of things at the station."

Ike dismounted, and Nathan ran to him. Ike picked him up and hugged him.

"The men that we are after, picked up and left sometime during the night. Signs from the campfire show that it hadn’t been put out too long ago. I figure they went the opposite direction; otherwise we would have ran into them by now." Teaspoon said.

"They are lookin’ for me," Joshua said.

"You have some explaining to do… just who are you?" Jimmy asked still pointing the gun at Joshua.

"If you’ll put that gun away; I’ll be a lot more relaxed to explain everything to you," Joshua said staring at the pistol Jimmy held.

Jimmy put the gun back in his holster. Crossing his arms in front of his chest, he stood silent waiting for Joshua’s answer.

"I’m trying to get the kid away from Frank and the rest of the gang. Frank only wants the boy because he witnessed…"

"Witnessed what?!" Jimmy ordered.

"Frank killed Nathan’s father during a raid. A raid that…a damn raid that I took part in. I didn’t kill anybody!! I was responsible for takin’ the horses." Joshua lowered his head and shut his eyes as if trying not to relieve the raid that ended the life of Nathan’s father. "I kept telling Frank NO!! Nobody has to die!! I’ll never forget the smile on Frank’s face when he pulled the trigger…he didn’t have to kill Nathan’s dad. I should have done something!! I SHOULD HAVE DONE something!! Maybe Nathan wouldn’t be in this mess…"

Joshua looked at everyone. "Let me help you capture Frank and the others. I want him stopped. I… I also understand that I still have to be locked up for being a part of this mess, but please… let me help you get him!" Joshua waited for an answer. Lou, Buck, Ike and Jimmy all looked at Teaspoon for a decision.

"All right. Let’s go find Frank. Then again, he might find us first!" Teaspoon said.

*************************

Rachel, Kid and Noah sat at the dinner table in silence. Noah was the first to break the silence. "Wonder how Cody is doing with that new express horse? I heard he wasn’t easy to ride."

Rachel pushed herself away from the table and stood in front of the window, staring out at the evening sunset.

"Rachel, everybody is gonna be fine. Nathan is fine." Kid tried to reassure her.

"I agree with Kid," Noah said.

Rachel sat back down. "I want them all back now," She said softly. "I want our family back…"

******************************

Frank sat on his horse and studied the tracks that lead several feet ahead into a brushy area. A gang member reined up beside him and said, "It would be hard to get a horse through all that, with the low lying tree limbs and thick brush."

"Yeah. It can be done though." Frank reached into his coat pocket, and pulled out a cigar. "They couldn’t have gone too far in all that. The tracks do lead in that direction." Frank lit the cigar and puffed on it. "Well, best we get going. We’ve got a boy to get and Joshua." Frank ordered the men.

"Then what?"

Frank grinned at the question, and then answered, "Kill them! Something I should have done in the first place!" The men spurred their horses forward through the thick brush.

********************************

"So, what’s the plan Teaspoon?" Jimmy asked.

"I haven’t quite figured one out yet. I’ve been wondering about that Joshua fella." Teaspoon answered, taking a long look at Joshua.

Jimmy noticed and said, "Something about him ain’t right. There’s always the chance he might lead us into a trap."

"Well let’s get goin’. Keep a keen eye on him Jimmy."

"Yes sir." Jimmy mounted the palomino, and stayed a few feet behind all the others. Teaspoon and Buck lead the way, while Lou, Ike and Nathan followed. Joshua had his hands tied behind his back. His reins were looped around Ike’s saddle horn. The tightness of the rope was beginning to chafe his wrists. With each step the horse took, he grimaced at the raw wound.

Sometime during the journey, Nathan fell ill. A high fever overtook the youngster. Lou agreed to take Nathan back to Rock Creek herself, while the others continued to look for Frank and the gang.

"Nathan?" Lou halted her horse and put her palm against the youngster’s forehead. "Your burning up."

Lou remembered seeing a small stream a few feet away. She slid from her horse, and carefully lifted Nathan from the saddle onto the ground. Taking a cloth from her saddlebag, she raced to the stream to soak it with cool water. If I can get his fever down, then we can make it back to Rock Creek… she thought. Rising slowly to keep from slipping on the rocks, she had a strange feeling that she was being watched. Suddenly a large hand covered her mouth, fighting to flee the abductor; she lost her balance and was being dragged from the stream.