Betrayal
Chapter Fourteen
After Doctor Han had left, everyone tried to find a comfortable place to sit or
stand in the small hospital room. Ezra looked around at everyone and could feel
that something was wrong. Nettie and Casey just looked worried, but his six
teammates looked worried, angry, and sad.
"Alright, what is the matter?" Ezra asked, deciding for the forward approach.
"What? What are you talking about?" asked Buck, his mustache twitching. "We're
just all worried about you," he added.
Ezra raised an eyebrow, clearly stating without words that he didn't believe
Buck. After a moment, he said, "I am an undercover agent and it is my business
to know how to read people. I can read all of you like an open book right now.
The only two people in this room that are strictly worried about me are Miss
Casey and Nettie. The rest of you are trying to hide something. What is it?"
Before anyone could answer, there was a knock on the door as it was pushed open.
"Hello, Ezra. How are you feeling?"
Ezra looked at the visitor and said, "Hello, Mister Travis. I'm fine."
Orrin could feel the tension in the room as he stepped completely inside.
"That's good. Josiah called me to let me know that you had been found and you
were in the hospital. I assume that you know who did this to you?"
Ezra nodded, "Yes. It was three of Edward Mounds' goons. If it hadn't been for
the timely arrival of Miss Nettie and Miss Casey, I think my early departure
from Earth would have been certain."
"Well, I'm glad that Nettie and Casey were able to be in the right place at the
right time. Do you know the names of the men? Can you identify them?"
Ezra nodded, "I know who two of them were. Stilts and Brown. The third man, I do
not know who he was. But, I would probably be able to make an identification."
Orrin nodded, "Good. That's good." He shook Ezra's hand and said, "I'll let you
get some rest, and I'll tell Evie that you're doing okay. Good-bye."
After Orrin left, Nettie and Casey decided to take their leave also. Within an
hour, the only people left in the hospital room were Ezra, Chris, Vin, and
Josiah.
Looking at Vin and Josiah, Ezra said, "You guys can go home. I won't try to
escape."
Vin chuckled and said, "Nah. We'll stay."
Ezra covered his mouth as he yawned and, too tired to argue, he said, "Alright."
Five minutes later, Ezra was asleep.
Chris, Vin, and Josiah sat in silence for a while, the only sound in the room
was Ezra's soft breathing.
It was Josiah that finally broke the awkward silence. "When do you plan to tell
him, Chris?"
Chris immediately knew what Josiah was talking about, without having to ask. He
glanced at Ezra, to make sure he was still asleep, before answering. "I'm
waiting for the right time. I can't tell him right now, not after everything
he's been through."
Josiah nodded, "You will have to tell him, though. It's the right thing to do."
Chris nodded, "I know. I'm just scared. Scared that I'll lose him."
"You should have thought about that before. I'm not going to keep your secret
forever, Cowboy. Plus, everything will come out when he finds out about Mary
being in jail."
Chris was mildly surprised at the hard look in Vin's eyes and the cold voice
that was being directed his way.
"I know that, Vin. You think this is easy on me? It's not. I love Ezra."
Vin snorted, causing Chris to narrow his eyes and scowl. "Don't give me that
look. If you truly love him, you wouldn't have done what'cha did."
Vin stood up and said, "It's a little too crowded in here. 'Night." With one
last look at Ezra, Vin walked out of the room.
"I'll be going too, let us know if you need anything," said Josiah.
After the door closed behind Josiah, Chris looked down at Ezra, surprised to see
emerald green eyes looking back at him.
"What were they talking about, Chris? What's everyone trying to hide?"
Chris sighed as he thought about what to say. Should he tell him the truth, that
way Ezra had nowhere to run? Or, should he try to distract him and wait until
Ezra was out of the hospital?