Lost

Disclaimer: I don't own the Magnificent Seven, not making any money, just cheap thrills.

Warnings: Angst, Slash

A/N: I don't know if the medical information is completely accurate, but it seemed to make sense.

Rating: FRT

Lost
Chapter 16


"Buck?" Vin wanted to believe this was real, but he was scared that he had just dreamt Buck into existence.

"I'm here Vin," Buck whispered. "You're going to be okay," he smiled down at the man in his arms.

Vin reached up, his hand ghosting over Buck's face. Lord he needed to touch him, to know he was real but what if...before he could complete the thought he closed the small distance remaining, letting his hand rest against Buck's cheek. The first thing his mind registered was warmth, the next was the realization that the man holding him was real, not imagined. "Knew you'd find me," he rasped.

Buck's eyes filled with tears, it meant more to him than he could say that Vin trusted him that much. "Just wish it'd been sooner."

"Found me, 's what's important," Vin assured him. Staring into Buck's eyes, Vin was surprised to see the tears forming there. "Don' cry Bucklin...'m okay," he tried to soothe the older man. To his dismay, rather than soothing it seemed his words had made it worse as the tears began to fall from his friend's eyes. Opening his mouth to try again, Vin didn't get the chance as Nathan came running into the saloon, followed closely by Chris and JD.

Nathan skidded to a stop next to Vin and Buck, quickly dropping to kneel beside them. As he reached for Vin's wrist, intending to take his pulse, he jerked back in surprise at the low growl coming from Buck. "It's okay Buck, I just want to make sure he's okay."

"Nathan?" Buck asked in a bewildered voice. "Vin's hurt Nathan, they hurt him bad," he quietly informed the medic, his voice thick with tears.

"I know Buck," Nathan softly confirmed. "Can you lay him on the floor for me?" he asked. As he spoke, he spread a blanket from the jail out on the wood surface.

"The floor?"

Nathan nodded, "I need to assess his condition, it'd be easier if he wasn't in your arms."

"Okay," Buck quietly agreed. Carefully he laid Vin down on the hard floor, reluctantly moving away so Nathan could take care of him.

"Hey Vin," Nathan smiled. "Looks like you found some trouble." As he spoke Nathan was already gently examining the younger man, silently cursing Browner each time Vin flinched from his touch.

"Guess so," Vin quietly agreed.

"Where do ya hurt?"

Vin thought about that, quietly taking inventory before attempting to answer the question. "Might be better to ask where don't I hurt," he joked even as a moan of pain escaped.

Chris watched the scene before him for only a moment, his eyes hardening with a promise of retribution for those who had dared to hurt Vin. Recognizing that there wasn't anything he could do for Vin, he left him in Nathan's capable hands. In only a few long strides he was standing over Rupert Browner's naked body as the smaller man began to stir. "This the scum in charge?" he asked JD as he stared down at Browner in disgust.

"He matches the description we have of Browner," JD confirmed.

"Did he," Chris swallowed hard, finding it difficult to get the question out. "Did he rape Vin?" he managed with his second try.

"No, we got here in time," JD replied. "It was close Chris, he was just about to..." the young man trailed off, unable to say the word.

Chris nodded in understanding. Kneeling down beside Browner, he grabbed him by his hair, jerking his head back. "You owe JD a thank you Browner," he growled.

"JD? I presume that is the young man who pummeled me into unconsciousness?"

"No, that would be the young man who stopped you from raping my best friend. That's why you owe him a thank you, if he hadn't stopped you I would've had to kill you," Chris coldly informed him. He glanced over at where Vin was being taken care of, with Buck hovering nearby, occasionally shooting murderous glares at Browner. "That is if there'd been anything left of you by the time I got here."

"I'll have him up on charges of police brutality," Browner threatened.

Chris shot him a wolfish grin as he bounced his head off the wood floor. "You don't want to do that Browner. First of all, there isn't anybody in law enforcement that won't want a piece of you when they see what you did to a brother officer and that includes prosecutors and judges. Secondly we have several team members who will be willing to testify that JD had no choice in beating you. It was the only way to stop you from causing Vin any more harm and of course he had to protect himself. Those bruises on your knuckles will back that story up.” He hadn't actually seen Browner's hands but the bruises on JD's face told him the man had gotten in a few strikes. “There is one more reason you wouldn't want to do that, the most important reason."

Several minutes went by, the silence quickly becoming unbearable for Browner. "What?" he finally asked, glaring at the blond ATF agent.

"I used to be a Navy Seal, I know plenty of ways to dispose of a body so that it'll never be found. Oh, and don't think being in jail would help you. I can get you out, even if you were in protective custody and they'd never be able to prove it was me. Even if they could find an officer willing to testify against me," he grinned. "Now what was that about police brutality?"

Rupert Browner hadn't gotten where he was by being stupid. "Nothing my good man, you must have misunderstood me."

"I must have," Chris agreed. "JD, you find his clothes?"

"Right here," JD replied. He held out the man's clothes, holding them with just the tips of his fingers, as if he were afraid of catching something.

"Drop 'em," Chris ordered as he stood up. "Get dressed," he ordered Browner as he released his wrists from the cuffs. "JD keep a close eye on him." Turning his back, he walked back to the others. Kneeling down beside Buck, he placed a supportive hand on his back. "How's he doing Nathan?"

"They worked him over pretty good Chris," Nathan grimly replied. The look his words brought to their faces had him immediately regretting them. "He'll live, but he's gonna be hurting for a while. Then there's the psychological damage, some of the things they did to him hurt him in more ways than just physical."

"How you want to get him to the hospital?" Chris asked.

"He ain't so bad hurt that we can't drive him ourselves, but I don't think we want to transport him with any of them in the vehicle."

"Hell no," Buck growled. There wasn't any way in hell he'd let Vin get in a car with them bastards. He'd carry him to the hospital himself before he let that happen.

"Calm down Buck," Chris soothed. "I'm not letting him ride with them either. We'll leave Josiah, Ezra and JD here to guard them while we take Vin to the hospital. We'll send some black and whites to pick Browner and his men up. The others can meet us at the hospital as soon as the, as Ez would say, miscreants are disposed of."

"Good. We should find his clothes, he won't like going to the hospital like this," Buck quietly pointed out.

"Um Chris," JD called from where he stood guarding Browner.

Chris quickly stood up, prepared to take Browner down if he was offering any resistance. He was surprised and if he were honest, a little disappointed to see Browner sitting on the floor, now fully dressed, offering no fight. "What is it JD?"

"I found Vin's clothes earlier, they cut them off of him."

"Alright JD, thanks." Turning around, he let out a heavy sigh. Damn Browner, he silently cursed. Looking around the old saloon, a part of him sincerely wished they were living in the old west. At least back then they knew how to handle men like Rupert Browner. "I'm gonna go with JD, we'll get Browner to the jail and let the others know what's going on," he quickly informed Buck and Nathan. "You two get Vin ready to move, I'll be back soon with my truck and we'll get him to the hospital."

"We'll have him ready Chris," Nathan assured him as he checked to make sure the blanket was securely wrapped around Vin.

A couple of hours later the others arrived at the hospital, quickly spotting Chris, but not Buck, they hurried to join him. All three felt their hearts dropping as they took in the dejected look on Chris' face. "Any news?" JD nervously asked as he sat down next to Chris.

"Not yet," Chris replied. "Nathan went to see what he could find out."

"Where's Buck?"

"Vin got so upset about going in the back alone that the doctor let him go along.” Looking in that direction as he spoke, he smiled at the sight which greeted him, “Nathan, how is he?"

"He's going to be okay, but there's some things you all need to know," Nathan carefully replied.

"Things?" Chris asked for them all. "What kind of things?"

Nathan licked his lips, damn but sometimes he really hated being the medical liaison for the team. "The nurse said we could use their break room to talk."

All four visibly paled, their imaginations running wild as they automatically began to consider the things that could've been done to their friend. Nervously they followed him down the hall to the break room. The door had barely shut behind them when they began to bombard Nathan with questions.

Nathan held up his hand, "Hold on," his voice raising a bit to get their attention. "Like I said he is going to be okay, but he's going to have a rough time of it."

"How so?"

"First of all the doctor did confirm that Vin was not raped." Nathan paused, giving them a moment to enjoy that bit of good news. "He was beaten pretty badly, but the closest they got to breaking any bones was cracking a few ribs. He'll have to be careful of those for a while. He also has a slight concussion."

JD snorted, "Of course he does, it's Vin." His remark brought chuckles from them all, lightening the somber mood a bit.

"You didn't bring us in here for this Nathan, what else is there?" Chris demanded.

Nathan took a deep breath, bracing himself against the door to keep them from charging out in search of Browner. "They tortured him." In a few clipped sentences he explained what had been done to Vin, not surprised when all four of the others began to look as though they were plotting murder. "The doctor had to sedate him so he can," Nathan swallowed hard. Even knowing that Vin would be out this time, it still made his skin crawl to think of his friend going through that a second time.

"So he can what Nathan?"

"So he can bend the nails back and treat the burns and cuts beneath them. He's going to have to stay in the hospital a few days so they can give him treatments every day."

"Jesus wept," Josiah mumbled, his heart breaking for his young friend.

"It ain't as bad as it sounds, they'll sedate him each time but they've got to make sure the wounds don't become infected. If they do Vin could very well lose his fingers," Nathan solemnly explained.

"Could they not treat him as an outpatient?" Ezra asked. He knew, as did the others, how much Vin hated being in the hospital.

Nathan shook his head, "Not this time. The location of the wounds is especially prone to becoming infected if exposed to injury. That part of the body just doesn't get exposed to bacteria usually, so it's easier for infection to set in. They want him in the hospital where they can start aggressive treatment at the first sign of infection."

"He's not going to like that," JD commented.

"Indeed."

"I know he won't y'all, but it's got to be this way. I did talk to the doctor, he knows about Vin's aversion to hospitals and he's fine with one of us staying with him at all times."

"That's good," Chris growled. "I'd hate to have to shoot Vin's doctor, too much paperwork."

His comment was delivered so dryly that it took a moment for the others to catch the joke. When they did, his remark accomplished what Chris had hoped for, relieving the tension in a burst of laughter. "Does Vin know?"

"Not yet, the doctor thought it would be easier to treat him if he didn't know until after the first treatment." Nathan wasn't surprised by the looks of disapproval crossing the faces of his teammates. He hadn't been happy with it either, and Buck had really objected. They all knew how Vin felt about being lied to and with all he'd already gone through Nathan was afraid it would damage his trust in his friends, making his recovery more difficult. "Buck and I didn't like it either, until the doctor explained," he quickly cut off their protests. "He made some good points. There really wasn't time to tell Vin right now. Quick treatment is his best chance of staving off any infection. The doctor also pointed out that stress can interfere with the body's ability to respond to treatment and Vin is already stressed without adding to it. He's not going to keep it from him, he's just waiting until he's recovered from the effects of the sedation and then he'll explain what will be needed to make sure he doesn't lose his fingers."

"That seems wise," Josiah commented, as the others nodded in agreement.

"When can we see him?"

"Doctor Burris said treatment will take about an hour and then they'll move him to his room, we can see him then."



An hour later the rest of team seven quietly walked into Vin's hospital room. Buck looked up as the door began to open, his hand automatically drifting to his gun. He sighed with relief when he saw his friends, "Shhh, he's still sleeping."

"How'd it go?" Nathan asked.

Buck shuddered, "Let's just say I'm glad he was asleep." Moving his eyes back to Vin's face, he gently brushed the hair from his face. "I hate to think of what it must've been like for him," he softly commented. He didn't tell them the extent of the injuries lying just under Vin's fingernails, nor how sick it had made him to watch the doctor and nurses treating them. Though Vin had been unconscious through it all, Buck hadn't been able to block out the imagined screams of the man he loved as they worked, just barely restraining himself from attacking the doctor.

Vin could hear voices, but these weren't the voices of the men who'd hurt him. These were men he trusted, men who cared about him. Men who would ride through hell to save him, men he would gladly do the same for. Sluggishly he fought to pry his eyes open, a small moan sounding as he shifted in the bed.

"Vin? Come on Vin, wake up for us," Buck encouraged.

"Cowboy, you with us?" Chris asked from the other side of the bed.

"Mmmmhmmm," Vin replied.

"Vin open your eyes," Chris ordered.

"Wanna sleep," Vin mumbled.

"I know cowboy," Chris smiled. "You got some worried friends that'd like to say hello."

"Frien's? Good frien's...ride...hell."

"Yeah we would," Chris confirmed.

Vin's eyes suddenly popped open, staring up at Chris with a touch of panic, "Browner?"

"He's in jail, he won't be hurting you or anybody else ever again."

Vin visibly relaxed against the pillow. "JD's a lion," he smiled, vaguely remembering the sound of his young friend's roar.

"Really?" Chris smiled, nearly laughing as JD blushed redder than anybody he'd ever seen.

Vin nodded, "Heard him roar."

"When was that?"

"Saloon...I think."

"He did," Buck confirmed. "Right before he tackled Browner and beat the hell out of him."

"JD did that?" Vin was surprised that the gentle young man could be so violent. "JD?"

JD stepped forward, taking Chris' place by the bed, "Yeah Vin?"

"Thank you," he smiled as he reached for JD's hand, grasping it firmly. "As Ez says, your timing is..." he paused, unable to remember the word.

"Impeccable," Ezra supplied.

"Yeah, that."

"You're welcome," JD uncomfortably responded. He didn't feel like he deserved praise for doing what any man would do for a friend, but he didn't want to upset Vin by saying so. "You get better soon Vin." Giving the other man's shoulder a light pat, he stepped away from the bed.

One by one the others greeted the man in the bed, each taking a moment to assure himself that the younger man really was going to be okay. Though it was only a few minutes, it seemed to wear Vin out. With a small smile playing across his lips, he drifted back to sleep, secure in the knowledge that his friends were there to watch his back.

TBC

Sorry it took so long, but for those who might wonder the mid-terms that delayed this chapter went well. Thank you for the good wishes. Hope y'all liked this one, please feed the muse with reviews.