A Place of Their Own
There is very little more precious to someone who has lived most of their life without someplace to call their own as that first glimpse of home. HOME. Even the word itself held almost divine significance to the long haired tracker sitting atop his horse at the gate posts of the ranch he had just purchased that morning. The man's arms tightened unconsciously around the tiny, black haired boy that rode in the saddle in front of him --who had become THE most precious thing in his life-- and he felt his throat tighten as a wave of emotion swept over him.
He was home. THEY were home. At last. Vin Tanner -- ex-army scout and tracker, ex-buffalo hunter, ex-bounty hunter, ex-wanted man, current peacekeeper in the town of Four Corners, and new father -- surveyed his land and let the tears flow unashamed down his cheeks. He had a new title to add to that list: Horse rancher.
"Is that it, Papa?" a little voice full of excitement piped up, pulling the tracker from his thoughts.
Vin looked down at the child busy trying to take in everything at once and smiled.
"Yeah, Buck," he told the child in a voice made rough with emotion. "That's it. That's our new home."
"Our forever home!" Buck crowed, clapping his hands in delight.
"That's right. You got it exactly, little man," Vin agreed as he wiped at his wet cheeks with the back of his hand.
Buck started bouncing in Vin's lap with anticipation and asked, "Can we go see it now, Papa? Can we?" Can we?"
"Yep, that we can," Vin grinned and nudged the horse with his heels to start it moving forward again.
"Go fast, Papa!" Buck eagerly chimed up. "I wanna see now!"
Laughing out loud with his own particular joy, Vin obliged by nudging the horse again and they picked up speed. The little boy squealed out and started laughing and urging him on, "Faster, faster, faster!"
In less than a minute the tracker was reining their mount to a stop in the yard of their new ranch. Vin threw his leg over the horse and dismounted. He reached up and pulled Buck from the saddle and set him on his feet. The sharpshooter tied the horse to the corral rail and stood looking around again.
He had made a thorough tour of the property before buying it but this time he saw it through different eyes. This time the eyes that made a sweep of the whole area were those of the place's owner. A little shiver of delight shot down his spine and his grin was almost earsplitting.
"We gots a barn, Papa! Are there horsies there?" Buck looked up in excited curiosity at the man standing beside him.
"Not yet," Vin told him. "We still have to buy our brood stock. We'll go huntin' some good ones soon. We got a lot to do to get this place in shape before we start to bring in more horses, but there's a milk cow in there. There's also chickens in the coop over yonder so we'll have our own eggs too."
"Is that our house?" Buck turned to look in awe at the house in front of him.
The house was big; two stories with a wraparound porch. Vin knew there was a large kitchen and parlor on the ground floor along with two bedrooms. The upstairs had an additional four bedrooms. The house was really too big for the two of them but it had come with the land, and the land was exactly what Vin had been looking for.
Vin, and the friends that had accompanied him to Tascosa, Texas to clear his name of a murder charge, had only been back to Four Corners for a week when Tanner began his search for the land he needed to start his horse ranch and put up a home for himself and his new son Buck. He had been frustrated at first, not finding anything suitable a reasonable distance from the town where he was currently employed as a peacekeeper.
He had gotten a list of the property for sale from the town banker and diligently checked out each one. Every acre of land he had looked at had not met his standards for one reason or another. He had been despairing of finding what he was looking for when Ezra came to his rescue.
Vin had returned from another wasted trip to scout out property. He had stopped by the saloon to wash the dust from his throat before retrieving Buck from the church where Josiah had been watching him all afternoon. As he walked into the cool dimness of the saloon he had seen Ezra wave him over to the table the gambler favored. Vin had nodded and collected a beer from the busy bartender before joining his friend and fellow peacekeeper.
With a deep sigh, Vin collapsed into the chair he pulled out and plucked his dust covered hat from his head and dropped it on the table. Ezra peered at him knowingly.
"No luck locating the proper parcel of land yet, my friend?" the gambler asked.
Vin took a deep sip of his beverage before he replied, "Nope. I'm beginning to think I might have to start looking over Eagle Bend way if I can't find what I'm looking for here. None of the places I've seen so far will do. The one I went to look at today had good grazin' but not enough water. In a dry year, I'd really be hurtin'. I need something with both."
Ezra grinned a self-satisfied grin and sipped at his own glass of whiskey. "Perhaps you are not looking in the right places," he said.
Tanner looked at the man's smile suspiciously and asked, "What do you know that I don't?"
The gambler's smile spread to a full fledged grin and he answered, "The mind boggles. I'm sure the answer to that question would require considerable time to expound, but as to the subject of acquiring a suitable property for your equine enterprise, I just this morning came into possession of some information that you might find of interest."
"Spit it out, Ez," Vin ordered wearily. "I ain't in the mood to play games with ya today."
"Very well," Standish said taking another sip of his drink before he continued. "I had jail duty this morning and was sitting outside on the porch when Jeff Roberts came to town."
Vin nodded. He was familiar with the sad story of the Roberts family. The family had crossed half the country to settle on their homestead. The parents had worked hard, and prospered in the years that followed. Their family grew from the four children they had arrived with to eight and all were happy and hard-working. Things had been almost perfect for the family until Mrs. Roberts had died in child birth with her ninth child.
The whole family had been devastated but they had pulled together and carried on, the older daughters taking on their mother's responsibilities and leaving the older boys and their father to work the land and cattle to support the many hungry mouths that needed to be fed. Things had settled down and the family continued to flourish until Mr. Roberts had been killed in a flash flood a little over a year earlier.
Jeff Roberts, the eldest at seventeen years old, and his siblings had done their best to keep their farm going for the last year, working until they dropped sometimes, but refusing all offers of help. Vin and the rest of the other peacekeepers had tried to keep an eye on them as much as possible, especially the leader of the peacekeepers, Chris Larabee, whose own property bordered along one side of the family's.
"How are they doin'? Vin asked in concern.
"Not as well as they should, but a better day seems to be on the horizon for them," Ezra answered. "It seems their maternal uncle has finally convinced them that it would be best if they all returned to the East to live with him and his wife. They are looking to sell their property and buy tickets for the journey to their uncle's.
Jeff approached me as he knew I, as he so quaintly put it, 'usually had more money than most folks could shake a stick at,' since I was so good at 'all that bettin' kind of stuff'. Quite frankly I'm not sure if I should take that as a compliment or an insult, but that's neither here nor there," Ezra said sharing an amused grin with the tracker.
"So they're gonna sell out and head back East," Vin mused. "A lot of folks will be sorry to see 'em go 'cause they're real good kids, but it's good that they're gonna have someone to watch out for 'em again. They worked too damn hard for kids their age."
"Indeed," Ezra agreed. "They will have a chance at a much better life under the care of their aunt and uncle than they could ever expect here. The point of all this is that they are looking to make a deal for their land and you are in a position to acquire it at a price that is fair for both parties.
We are both aware that for a property of that size, the only other ones that might be likely to have the money necessary to purchase it would be one of the large ranchers like James or Royal. Even the children know they would never get a fair price from either of those men.”
Vin nodded his head as he considered the gambler's words. He was familiar with the Roberts' place having stopped by many times to check on the family. His mind's eye recalled the wide verdant fields of grass and the large streams that crisscrossed the property. The barn was large and well cared for with an attached corral. The house was huge and in relatively good shape although the family had let a lot of the maintenance on the structure slide due to lack of time and money to do proper upkeep. It also had the advantage of still being close to town. On the whole, it was exactly what the tracker had been looking for.
Vin looked at the gambler watching him closely and asked, "Did you tell 'em I might be interested?"
"I mentioned it," Ezra assured him. "Young Jeff seemed most eager to speak with you. I told him I would convey his offer to you and you would be in touch. He indicated you were welcome to come out and look the place over and discuss terms."
Vin began grinning again, suddenly feeling energized. "You reckon Josiah'd mind watchin' Buck a little while longer for me?"
"Under the circumstances, I rather doubt it." Standish smiled and tossed back the rest of his drink then rose from his chair saying, "Shall we?" and led the tracker from the saloon.
The two men had ridden out to the Roberts' place and Vin had done his inspection. The deal had been made over coffee and apple pie at the family's kitchen table and set with a handshake. They finalized it six days later.
The Roberts had used the time to sell off their cattle and horses, using the proceeds to purchase their tickets and ship the belongings they had chosen to take with them back East. They had been packed up and ready to board the stage coach when the papers were signed and witnessed, and Vin turned over the money agreed upon in exchange for the land deed. After less than three weeks of looking, Vin was now the proud owner of nineteen hundred acres of prime grazing land, one hundred acres of woods, and a house where he would have plenty of room to live and raise his adopted son.
Vin picked Buck up and walked across the ranch yard. He climbed the porch steps and walked to the front door where he stopped to look down at Buck.
"You ready to see your new home?" he asked.
Buck grinned and his little body squirmed, too energized and excited to be still. "Now, Papa!"
Vin grinned back, just as excited with showing the boy around their new house. "You got it, pard," he said and reached down to turn the doorknob and swing the door open to give the child his first view of the house.
"Golly," Buck whispered in awe as they stood in the doorway and observed the large parlor.
Vin stepped inside and closed the door behind him.
"We really get to live here?" Buck's eyes grew big in wonder at the idea.
"Yep," the tracker assured him as he set the child on his feet. "It's all ours, free and clear. Go on, look around."
Buck threw a delighted look at his father and began exploring.
The house had come furnished for the most part. Vin had agreed to buy whatever furnishings the children had decided to leave behind since the cost of shipping them back East would have been too exorbitant for the Roberts family. The proud children had taken only the most precious heirlooms of their family and left the rest behind even though Vin had generously offered to pay the expense of moving it for them. Consequently, the new homeowners didn't have to walk into an empty house, but instead found rooms that were already warm and inviting and still bearing the signs of a woman's touch.
Buck hurried over and crawled onto the old but well cared for blue brocade settee and sat looking over at his father with a grin.
"Look, Papa! We got's our own seat," and he began bouncing on it. "It's real soft too! And look!" He squealed, pointing a little finger at the next item to draw his attention, and he scrambled off the settee to run across the room to where a tall wooden rocking chair sat by the large stone fireplace. The boy reached out and gave the chair a push that set it to rocking and he crowed in delight before climbing up in the seat and pumping his legs and body back and forth to get it rocking faster.
"We gots a rockin' chair too!" he cried in wonder.
Vin stood with his back leaning against the door watching in affectionate amusement as the excited child made his discoveries. "There's more," Vin informed him happily.
Buck jumped from the rocker and raced to his papa. The child grabbed the man's hand and started excitedly pulling him toward one of the doors that opened off the parlor. Together the two explored the house: checking out the closets and kitchen pantry, climbing the ladder mounted to the wall in the upstairs hall that led to the attic, looking into the oven of the wood burning kitchen stove, and, wonder of wonders, pulling the handle of the pump that provided water right inside their own kitchen. The little family spent the next hour finding all the little niches, nooks and crannies of their new home and taking inventory of what now belonged to them.
The pair had eventually made their way back outside to the barn so Buck could get acquainted with the milk cow that lived there. Afterwards, they headed back to the front porch and Vin had found a seat on the steps to watch as Buck had wandered around exploring the yard between the barn and the house and chasing a few disgruntled chickens around. The boy had eventually bounced back to Vin and crawled into his lap.
“Did you decide which room you wanted?” Vin asked as he wrapped his arms around the boy and hugged him close.
The little mouth pursed in thought as he tried to answer the tracker's question. “I'm not sure. Do I hafta pick now?” Buck asked.
“Nah,” Vin assured him. “There's no hurry. Why don't you try each of 'em out and see which one you like the best then choose.”
“Kay,” Buck said happily and wiggled deeper into his father's arms. “Which one are you gonna choose so I know not to pick that one?” the boy replied generously.
“I suppose the front one off the parlor had better be mine…so's I can see who's comin' to visit us,” Vin answered with a smile.
Content, the two sat for awhile just taking it all in.
Suddenly Buck sat up straight, looking down the long lane to the road that ran in front of the ranch.
“Somebody's comin',” he said and Vin turned to look as well.
“Yep,” the tracker said as he recognized the horse and rider that had turned into their lane and was now approaching slowly, “I reckon you're right.”
The boy watched curiously for another few minutes then jumped from his father's lap with a whoop and took off running toward the lane.
“Uncle Chris! Uncle Chris!”
Chris Larabee raised a hand at the greeting and waved to the excited boy. Buck slowed his wild advance and waited until the man drew even with him to reach up his arms asking to be picked up. Chris bent low and caught one of his hands and swung the child into the saddle in front of him.
“Hey, twiglet!” the black clad gunslinger and leader of the peacekeepers of Four Corners said as he gave the child a hug.
“We gots a new house, Uncle Chris!” Buck informed him animatedly.
“I know,” Chris said as he spurred his mount forward again. “Your papa told me all about it. I came to see for it for myself.”
“It's real biiiggg, Uncle Chris,” Buck punctuated his announcement by swinging his arms as wide open as he could.
“I take it you like it then?” the man teased.
Black hair started flopping around madly as the little head nodded.
“I gets to choose my own room and ever'thing. And we gots a cow and a whole bunch a chickens, and a barn, and rockin' chair, and a stove, and something that pours water right inside the house!” Buck recited in a rush.
As the child talked, Chris stopped his horse in front of the house. Vin had risen from his seat on the porch steps and walked over to greet his best friend. Chris handed the boy over to the tracker and dismounted.
“I thought I'd do the neighborly thing and come see you,” Larabee grinned as he held a hand out to Vin. The two men shook hands as the gunslinger continued. “Congratulations, Vin. You got yourself one heck of a fine spread here.”
Vin smiled back proudly and replied, “Thanks, Cowboy. I do believe it'll do us.”
Chris laughed. “I wouldn't be much of a neighbor if I came to visit without something to welcome you to your new home,” Larabee joked as he reached around and pulled something from his saddlebag and handed it to Vin.
Vin looked down at the bottle of whiskey he held and then grinned at the other man.
“If there ever was a reason to celebrate then this is it,” Larabee told him.
Vin nodded happily at the gunslinger and replied, "You got that right. Thanks, Chris. We'll crack this open as soon as Buck goes ta bed."
Chris agreed then turned his attention to the black haired boy standing beside him almost vibrating with excitement.
"Well? You gonna show me this house of yours or not?" the man teased Buck with a raised eyebrow and a smile.
Buck's grin got wider and he grabbed Larabee's hand and started tugging him towards the front porch.
"Come on, Uncle Chris," Buck told him eagerly. "I'll show ya!"
With obliging amusement, the blond man allowed the little one to lead him inside. A chuckling Vin followed behind them.
The visitor was led up and down the stairs, in and out of every room by the excited boy. The little one insisted the every window had to be checked for the view by the gunslinger; every bed had to be bounced on, every chair sat in. Buck took a gleeful delight in working the handle of the kitchen pump and showing Chris the miracle of water flowing into the kitchen wet sink.
The amused man indulgently complied with every request the child put to him, obediently looking at everything that was pointed out to him and expressing the appropriate appreciation for every new wonder that was revealed.
Vin followed the man and child around the structure with a huge grin that he couldn’t seem to get off his face. He too was amused with his adopted son’s antics, but if the truth were known, he was just as excited and eager to show off his new home to his best friend.
The trio was heading for the barn when the sound of horses coming up the lane caused them to stop to greet their new visitors. Larabee watched as the rest of the regulators rode into the ranch yard and greeted the others.
“So who’s watching the town?” the leader asked his men with a raised eyebrow.
“Yosemite and Tiny said they’d keep an eye on things while we’re gone,” the young sheriff hastened to assure him. The identical twins, owners of the town’s livery stable, frequently helped out when the regulators needed them, so Chris nodded and let the subject drop.
Buck was almost dancing in delighted joy as he waited for the men to dismount. He threw himself at the first man to make it to the ground and hugged the lucky man’s knees.
“Did you come to see our new house too?” he said as he looked up at Josiah with crystal blue eyes shining with pleasure.
Josiah reached down and hauled the child up into his arms before replying, “Yep. I heard you got yourself the best place in all of the whole territory, so I figured I’d come along and see for myself if that was true.”
“It really IS true, Uncle ‘Siah. We gots the best house EVER! You gotta come see!” Buck told him.
“Good afternoon, Buck,” Ezra addressed the boy as he walked over after tying his horse to the corral rail. “How do you like your new domicile?”
“I don’t know, Uncle Ezra,” Buck told him with a shrug, “But we gots a new house and it’s really great! I’ll show ya! Come see!” The child wiggled out of Josiah’s arms and grabbed both men by the hands and started back inside, looking over his shoulder at the remaining peacekeepers.
“Come on, Uncle JD, Uncle Nathan. You gotta come see too!”
The laughing men followed the child inside leaving Vin and Chris with matching smiles as they watched the group follow the boy talking animatedly. The two continued to their original destination and walked into the barn.
“It really is a great spread, Vin,” Chris said seriously as he leaned against one of the empty stalls that lined one side of the wall in the barn. “You did good.”
“Thanks, Cowboy,” Vin answered his friend. “I think Buck and I’ll be happy here.”
“You both deserve it,” was the quiet reply, “more than anybody else I know. It’s been a long time coming for you, hasn’t it?”
Vin nodded and smiled, saying, “That it has. I kinda feel like I should be holdin’ my breath just so I don’t wake up and find out it’s all been a dream.”
“Used to be a dream maybe,” Chris told him, “but it’s reality now. It’s yours, Vin. You finally got that home you were always looking for.”
“My forever home,” Vin whispered the phrase he and Buck had coined.
Hazel eyes met blue and a silent message of understanding passed between the two men that had become closer than brothers.
Buck’s excited chatter could suddenly be heard as he led his tour group of regulators from the house and started toward the barn.
Chris grinned and said, “And someone to live there with you to guarantee that home is never lonely…or too quiet!”
The two were still laughing when the others entered the barn.
The regulators weren’t the only ones that wanted to welcome the sharpshooter and his son to their new home. It appeared that half the town was anxious to show the pair how happy they were for them. Nettie Wells and her niece Casey were the first to arrive. The two had been busy all morning preparing a fitting feast to honor the occasion. The regulators were more than happy to help carry in the bowls and platters of food the ladies had loaded in their wagon.
Mary Travis and her son Billy followed soon after. Mary brought a cake and a plate of sugar cookies as her part in the celebration. Gloria Potter and her two children showed up next with jugs of crisp apple cider and an assortment of candies from her store. There did seem to be quite a large supply of lemon drops there, Vin noted in amusement. Gloria had fallen instantly under Buck’s spell the first time she had met him and knew of his fondness for the treat.
More visitors arrived in a steady stream, the town’s ladies bringing more food than Vin knew he and Buck could have eaten in a month. He was glad everyone was staying for the impromptu party to help eat it up.
Vin stood on the front porch watching his son. Buck was in heaven. He was running in the front yard with Billy Travis and the Potter kids, and a few of the other children that had accompanied their parents. Vin couldn’t help but smile as he listened to the boy’s laughter as he played with his new friends. He doubted he’d have a hard time getting the boy to sleep that night after all the happy exercise Buck was getting.
“It’s a beautiful place, Vin,” Nettie said as she slipped an arm around the young man’s waist for a hug.
“Thanks, Nettie.”
“I’m glad it was you who bought out the Roberts,” she told him. “Those children deserved to be treated fairly. There are some that would have taken advantage of them and tried to rob them blind. They were lucky you were in a position to help.”
Vin shrugged and replied, “We were all lucky.”
“It’s good to see you settled,” Nettie said watching him. “Good to see you happy. That shadow that I always saw in the back of your eyes is gone now.”
Tanner grinned at her self consciously and answered, “Got everythin’ I always wanted. It’d be pretty hard NOT to be happy.”
Nettie smiled and hugged him again then went back inside the house. She almost ran into Ezra on the way in, the gambler stepped aside graciously to allow her to pass. Ezra walked to stand beside his friend and gaze out over the yard at the children playing there.
“I never got a chance to thank ya properly, Ez,” Vin said as he turned his head to look at the gambler. “If it hadn’t been for you, none of this would have happened. I’d still be lookin’ for a place and getting’ discouraged. I owe you more than I can say. Thanks, Ezra.”
“I feel no need for thanks, and there is no debt between us, my friend,” Ezra said as he shook his head. “My reward is the expression on your face and that of Buck’s as you look on your new home. That is more than ample compensation for any small part I might have played, I assure you.”
“You’re a good friend, Ezra,” Vin said sincerely. “I’m glad you’re one of mine.”
“As am I,” Ezra returned.
The men stood watching the laughing children in companionable silence for a while.
“You know, I been thinkin’,” Vin said quietly, drawing the gambler’s attention. Ezra raised an eyebrow in question as he looked at the tracker. “I don’t got a lot of book learnin’. Hell, I couldn’t even read my own name until Mary started teaching me a couple of years ago. I’m better at it now, but I still don’t do so good sometimes.”
“You underestimate yourself, Vin,” Ezra insisted positively. “You have made incredible progress in the short time you have been studying. You are, perhaps, too close to it all to see how far you have actually advanced, but as one who has observed you from the beginning, let me assure you that your development is nothing short of extraordinary, in my opinion. ”
Vin shrugged self-deprecatingly. “The thing is, the Roberts kids’ situation kinda got me thinkin’. There’s a lot of folks out there that wouldn’t mind taking advantage of somebody that don’t read or write too well. It’d be pretty easy for somebody that could do it better to cheat ‘em.”
Ezra looked uncomfortable for a moment at the turn the conversation had taken, remembering times growing up under his mother’s tutelage that he had witnessed her doing exactly what his friend had just described.
“I’m afraid you are correct. There are many such persons in this world,” Ezra replied neutrally.
“That’s why I was wondering…” Vin faced Ezra and looked at him squarely, “If you’d consider bein’ my partner in the ranch.”
Ezra froze and started in shock at the tracker at the unexpected offer.
“You want me to be your partner?” Ezra asked, still thunderstruck.
“Yep,” Vin assured him. “I figure Buck and I aren’t the only ones that could use a home. You been wanderin’ almost your whole life. Don’t ya think it might be nice to have a place to settle in for a change? There’s plenty of room here, but ya wouldn’t have to move in if ya didn’t want to.
Even if you don’t want a regular home, I think it still makes good sense all around. You know all about business and such. Heck, if your Mama hadn’t come to town the way she did and messed with ya, you’d be running your own saloon right now, and I know you’d ‘ve been making money hand over fist. You’re good at that kinda thing.
I figure I could raise the horses and run the ranch ‘cause that’s what I’m good at. You wouldn’t have to get your hands dirty or nothing. You could handle the business end, keep the books and all. You know more about how those things work than me. And you’re good with people too, know how to read ‘em. You’d know who was on the up and up and who was trying to cheat us. You’re smart too, and no slick chiseler would be able to put one past you, like they might me ‘cause you got too much book learnin’.
“You would trust me that far? Trust me with your money? Your livelihood? Me? A gambler and a con man?” Ezra asked with stunned incredulity.
Vin looked at him squarely and answered with absolute conviction, “You’d never cheat me, Ez.”
The gambler looked into the blue eyes staring into his so openly and knew the man was being completely honest with him. The amount of trust Vin had shown with his simple statement rocked the gambler in the deepest recesses of his soul. No one had ever shown so much faith in him, not even his own mother. No one had ever bothered to look deep enough to find the good man that hid behind the façade.
“I..” the gambler had to stop to clear his throat as he fought back emotions, “I do not quite know what to say to that generous offer.”
“You don’t have to make up your mind right now,” Vin assured him. “Just think on it a spell, and let me know when you decide.”
The sharpshooter slapped the gambler on the shoulder with a warm smile then stepped down from the porch to go pull Buck from the laughing pile of children that had taken to wrestling in the dirt. Ezra watched him go, shaking his head in wonder at the longhaired tracker.
Vin stopped by the pile of grubby children and reached over to grab Buck by the back of his britches and lift him up. He left the child dangling for a moment, making the boy hoot with laughter before setting him on his feet and looking him over for damages. The child was the smallest one in the group and Vin had been afraid he might accidentally get hurt by the older, bigger children. Buck grinned up at his papa, a streak of dirt smeared down one of his cheeks, but apparently unharmed. The other children stopped wrestling as they watched the tracker, afraid they had somehow gotten into trouble.
Vin smiled to reassure them and gave a wink. “There’s cake and cookies inside after you wash up,” he told them and started a stampede to the water trough. He picked Buck up and sat him on his hip to carry the child into the house and toward the kitchen. It only took a few moments to wash the little boy’s face and hands. Vin handed the child one of Mary’s sugar cookies and set him back on his feet just as the passel of freshly washed children thundered into the house. Vin passed out cookies and slices of pound cake to the appreciative children.
The party lasted all afternoon and into the early evening. Vin couldn’t remember when he had enjoyed himself so much. He gave a contented sigh as he watched the last of the guests disappear down the road back to town. He looked down at the dark haired child standing beside him still waving at the departing visitors and had to smile. The little boy was covered in dust and dirt from head to toe, and stains down his shirtfront testified to the food and drink the child had consumed that day. He still had cookie crumbs ringing his mouth and a smear of something that looked like cake frosting on one cheek, but his grin matched his father’s when the boy finally lowered his hand and looked up at his father.
“That was sure a good party, wasn’t it, little man?” Vin asked him.
“It was grrreaaatttt!” Buck growled out enthusiastically. “Can we do it again tomorrow?”
Vin laughed and swung the boy up into his arms.
“Fraid not,” Vin answered with a tickle to Buck’s ribs that set the boy to squirming and giggling. “We’d best go get you cleaned up. You can’t go trying out one of those new beds of ours looking like you been rassling a pig.”
Knowing the townspeople had a welcome party planned for their friend and his son and it was unlikely that Vin would be able to return to town that afternoon to retrieve their gear as he had planned, Josiah and Nathan had taken it upon themselves to clean out Vin and Buck’s room at the boardinghouse. They had carried the pair's things into the back bedroom on the first floor and left them there for the tracker to put away at his leisure.
Vin stopped by the bedroom to grab a clean night shirt and set of drawers for Buck then headed into the kitchen. Nettie had already showed him the intricacies of using the big, black stove and a fire was burning cheerfully in the heavy metal beast heating the water in the reservoir that Nettie had shown him how to fill and drain. Vin set Buck down and went to the pantry to retrieve the hip bath he had seen there earlier. He collected the soap and a towel, and then carefully prepared a bath for Buck who sat contentedly on the floor humming to himself and playing with his fingers as he watched Vin work.
When all was ready, the tracker called the boy over and helped him pull the filthy clothes off, dropping them into a pile on the floor to be retrieved later. He lifted Buck into the tub and sat him in the water. Vin could gauge how tired Buck was when the child didn’t splash or play, but was content to let his papa bathe him. It wasn’t long before the little boy was swaying, already half asleep. Vin finished the bath quickly and dried Buck off before slipping him into his nightclothes.
The tracker carried the sleeping boy to the bedroom where all their gear had been stored and pulled the covers down on the bed. He slipped the child into bed then pulled up the covers and tucked him in tightly. Vin sat on the side of the bed, gently brushing the dark hair away from Buck’s face.
It had been a long time coming for both of them, but at last they had a place to lay their heads at night, a place of their very own…a home. As he watched the boy sleep, peace filled him and the tracker gave a contented sigh. It felt damn good to be home.
The End.
6/2/04