DISCLAIMER: The Young Riders is the creation of Ed Spielman, and the property of Ogiens/Kane productions in association with MGM/UA television. The characters from the television program The Magnificent Seven are the property of Trilogy and The Mirisch Co. I am making no money from their use.
This Story is created for entertainment purposes only, no infringement intended. Not to be copied without permission from the author.
RATINGS: PG - violence, mild language
WARNING: This Story contains an alternative Universe theme, if this type of story is not to your liking or will somehow offend you please delete this mail immediately and do not read any further. In addition it is a The Young Riders/The Magnificent Seven Crossover, so if crossovers are not your cup of tea, please go no further. Furthermore this story contain semi graphic images of a terrorism nature, if you feel this may disturb you please find a different story that you will enjoy.
NOTES: : This is the sequel to the recently completed The Change. The song that inspired the Title is by Garth Brooks on his NO fences album. Eternal thanks to Mog for letting me play in her ATF AU sandpit. Thanks heaps to Enid (known affectionately here as my font of all knowledge) for all the brainpicking I have done. Thanks to my net sisters Lyn and Dayna for all the collaboration and characterisation help, couldn’t have done it without you.
CHAPTER 6
Oh you know, when I look into your eyes
I can really feel the pain
Starin in the mirror
At a Victim of the Game
Three days of ploughing through Theresa’s past, investigating any person they had ever suspected of being linked to Theresa and thorough checks into their often shady pasts failed to show any clues as to the identity of the mutilation bomber. Tempers were fraying, when the entirety of both teams were together. The tension in the room could be cut with a knife. Ezra and to a lesser degree Buck, barely contained their animosity toward Kid, and in return the rest of Kid’s team retaliated in kind towards the recuperating duo. Louise on the other hand was closing in on herself, refusing any sort of support from any of the men. Prefering to spend her time alone searching for some sign of her sister.
The others watched over her carefully, the already slender woman barely ate, rarely spoke, almost never slept and spent her time scouring local prostitute haunts questioning everyone about her baby sister. Several times Kid had tried to offer her a hand of support but she had taken to sullenly brushing him aside. Almost as if she had enough to deal with and didn’t want to, or didn’t need to cope with the additional burden of their secret relationship. After the second time she had shrugged him aside, she had retreated to the comfortable silence and support of the union she had forged with Buck and Ezra. Both men took her retreat as her trust in them to keep her safe from unwanted attentions and looked out for her with the ferocity of trained attack dogs.
All team members were surprised when they were called to the conference room for an unscheduled meeting. When they had all arrived they were faced with an angry Teaspoon and Chris. After both teams were settled at the large conference table Chris leaned forward resting his weight on his clenched fists.
“Lets get one thing straight people” he looked pointedly at the four warring agents
“This stops NOW” he stated quietly but forcefully “If you can’t play together nicely, then you four are off the team”
“I need assurances from the lot of you that you will stop this crap” Teaspoon spoke his voice holding an angry edge.
The team members all looked at one another and realised that they had no choice, they would have to put aside their differences if for no other reason, but to catch this sadistic maniac. Mumbled assurance issued from each of them, some automatic, some grudgingly, but soon all but one of them had answered.
“Louise?” teaspoon questioned in a growl
“Fine” she spat “Whatever it takes to catch him!” and glared at her supervisor angrily
“Damnit Louise” he glared back “You shouldn’t be on this damn case anyway. I need to know you can handle it” he softened a little as he saw the pain in her eyes.
“I’m still here aren’t I” she spoke, the fire in her eyes defying him to take her off the case.
Chris moved over to the VCR and picked up the remote control “We got another tape this morning” he spoke as all eyes flew to Lou’s paling face “Delivered by courier” he spoke “paid for in cash the address used is a vacant lot. We waited until we were all together before we have played it.”
“Are you gonna play the damn tape or just talk about it” Lou growled her nerves strung as tight as a bow, needing to see what had become of her sister, once and for all. Seated between Buck and Ezra, she barely even noticed as both of them grabbed a hand each and clasped her hand tightly in giving what little support she would accept.
Chris leaned back against the wall of the conference room and hit the play button. They immediately realised that this tape was completely different to anything they had seen before. They were struck immediately by the same blood dripping words, this time reading Anyone for Chess? Before the scene cut to footage that made two of the men in the room sink into their seats. The others watched in interest as they heard and saw the argument that had raged so violently and so quickly between Kid and Ezra. Both Kid and Ezra avoided Lou’s and their leaders eyes as they watched the tape continue. The screen faded to black again as they watched in abject fascination the words on the screen tormenting them. “The stakes have just got higher” Jimmy read aloud as the black screen faded into footage of JD and Casey leaving a cinema. The footage was badly edited but effectively showed the teams that the young lovers had been followed home, even to JD’s chagrin showing their tentative yet passionate kiss goodnight on her doorstep.
An icy dread settled over the teams, somehow knowing what was going to happen before it did. JD’s face grew paler as he watched the video pan through Casey’s living room and into her bedroom. They all watched as the camera operator approached a sleeping Casey.
“No” JD cried as he watched a hypodermic needle approach his girlfriends arm. They all watched in horror as the young woman woke, her struggles only brief as the drugs affected her system almost immediately. It seemed no sooner had her eyes opened and she was slumping back to the bed unconscious, at the madman’s mercy. The screen faded to black as they read the words that slowly appeared. “will she live, will she die, can you save her, Who Cares? Not I” Josiah’s rich voice read the cruel words.
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