Loaded Guns and Broken Fences [On Hold]

Chapter 5

Bran sputtered and hacked. If they'd have given him some warning, he would have held his breath, but he figured that was exactly why they hadn't.

"Where's our sister?" Clyde snarled over Bran's labored heaves.

"Well...that'll depend...on who yer sister is..." Bran panted, following it with a weak sarcastic gurgle. His long dark locks clung to his head and face as his hat floated atop the water inches below.

"The girl who was with me an mah brother, ya dim jackass!" Wade snapped. Bran McGrath was playing with them... The son of a bitch was gettin' beat up and half drowned... and he was playing with them.

A quick look at the rest of his companions told Wade they were just as near the end of their patience as he was. To be truthful, he himself wasn't sure if finding Abby was really his aim or whether it was seeing the McGrath suffer. If it was Sarah missin'...that'd be different. Emit could sure be a dull knife at times, but he was still his brother.. and he was in some deep water now because of John McGrath. Why not see Bran pay for it?

"Where'd you take her?" Ben demanded in a slow, seething tone. He shifted his weight, making it clear that he and his brother were still poised to send Bran plunging back under at any moment.

At first, Bran was sure he had no heavenly clue what they were talking about. It wasn't until he'd cleared the water from his nose and mouth enough to actually use the brain in his skull, that he recalled earlier. Then he was finally able to come to the simplest of conclusions...they were talking about Abby.

"Her!?" His response was surprised, equal parts at himself and them, though now it made a bit of sense, at least. They must have assumed he'd done something ungentlemanly to the girl. "I left her with Ol'Doc McGrath... Christ, is that wut y'all are so hung up on?"

Ben's gaze flicked to his brother. "Get over to the Doc. If she's there, take her home." Clyde let go of Bran and headed out without a word while Leroy quickly took his place. "If I find out you've hurt her, you're gonna wish I'd killed you here."

"Wait.. You ain't gonna let 'em go now, are ya?" Wade wondered suddenly.

Ben cocked a dark brow. "Why? You ain't satisfied?"

Bran's heart sank. Was there really any use in trying to reason with these people? Hell, he'd been rather nice considering what happened earlier, and a whole lot of good it had done him. It seemed worthless, and now he was regretting not shooting Wade and his brother in that forest... a mistake he would be sure not to repeat if he made it out of this.

Wade thought for a moment before looking over at the iron tools propped by the fire. A devious smile spread across his face as he looked at Ben and his own brothers.

"I'm pickin' up whach yer puttin' down.." Leroy grinned, nodding his approval.

"Hey, now..." Bran murmured as he watched the exchange of unsavory glances. His shoulders gave a quick, instinctual jerk.

"What's yer name, McGrath?" Willis asked casually, just as he would if he were inquiring on the weather or time of day.

"Hold up! I dun told ya where she's at!" Bran said, trying to reason his way out of anything worse than some bruises and an unscheduled late night bath.

Wade pulled a long metal rod from its resting place and held the more intricate end of it in the fire small. The group snickered and shifted with a nervous excitement as they watched the flames dance around the instrument.

"So... where we gonna put it..?" Wade asked, turning to reveal the glowing Shield brand.

"Put it on his face," Calvin grumbled from where he stood, still cupping his nose. "Make em' ugly."

When Bran laid eyes on the red-hot iron, the fear and weight of what they were talking about doing caused him to lunge desperately forward in a mad and vain attempt to escape. Leroy stumbled, surprised by the sudden attempt, but Ben aided him in holding Bran steady.

Wade approached them in a few quick strides, his eyes set on the half-soaked male. Yanking up Bran's shirt, he exposed his lower abdomen and pressed the searing metal into the flesh just above Brand's hip bone. Bran screamed, causing a few of them to wince just a bit as they watched. The scent of burning human flesh was vile.

After he was contented, Wade finally removed it, examining his handy work. Ben dragged Bran over to the barn door, shoving him out into the darkness.

Leroy had delivered a swift kick to the McGrath's backside as he passed, sneering, "Run on home now, boi, get!" Laughter erupted from the group as the McGrath hobbled forward briefly before going down.

Bran hit the dirt hard, though he barely noticed. All he wanted to do was to stay curled on his side. But he knew he'd better put some distance between himself and his attackers. So, despite how nauseous it made him, he forced himself to his feet. He didn't get fully upright, every movement pulled and stretched the torched skin as he fumbled and near crawled all the way back into town.

As Bran finally came around the corner of the bar, John and his cousin, Allen, were just coming out. When they spotted Bran pulling himself into his saddle, John jogged over, taking the horse by the bridle.

"Brand?" he murmured in confusion, trying to stabilize his little brother with his free hand.

Bran gritted his teeth. "Don't call me that."

To John, it wasn't clear why Bran had said that until they'd made it home. He and Allen caught glimpses of the grizzly burn while their aunt Celly cleaned and bandaged it.

"Gawl-dang, Bran..." Allen breathed, lacking anything helpful or comforting to say, but finding it equally hard to stay silent.

Allen was the same age as John, and just as tall, but his mouth was twice the size of John's. Bran had given him guff about it plenty of times, but at that moment, he welcomed anything besides John's silent stare.

"Why the hell'd ya just leave like that?" Bran finally demanded from John, who was pulled from his thoughts long enough to cast an angry look back at Bran.

"Why the hell did you have to go and piss 'em off?"

"Me!? The hell you mean, me? I ain't shot at 'em and riled 'em all up!" Bran snapped back, sitting forward as John rose to his feet and closed the gap between them.

"Well, ya sure as hell did something!"

Celly stood abruptly and moved between them. "Enough," she said in a tone that made all three boys shrink back instantly. "Now, I don't care who did or didn't do what, but ya ain't gonna carry on like this at this hour," their aunt scolded.

Celly had just gotten the younger children to sleep. The last thing she needed was for their fighting to wake them.

"Allen, get him upstairs," She said as she motioned to Bran. "He's staying over here tonight. And you," she added, turning on John. "I swear, if this is over that land..." Celly shook her head, as if unable to come up with anything reasonable to finish with besides a disappointed sigh.