Cut and Run 2 - Sticks and Stones

There was a puncture on his palm that made it impossible to grip anything hard. And since he’d wrenched his hand away from the pain when the cat had bitten down, the punctures weren’t just deep, they were rips that had torn up the skin, making it harder for the wounds to close. In fact, he’d had gunshots that were less painful than his hand was right now.
    “Hurts,” he repeated. “It ain’t infected, though,” he surmised with a shake of his head.
    “Keep an eye on it, tough guy,” Zane murmured as he kept wrapping the modified brace with the tape to bulk it up and make it stiff. “I don’t want to have to carry you out of here.”
    “Wouldn’t be the first time,” Ty assured him as Earl stepped closer and handed him a small tin of Rawleigh’s antibiotic ointment. “Thanks,” Ty said as he looked up at his father and took the tin.
    Earl swished a bottle of water at him. “Time to clean it again,” he said grimly. Cleaning it the night before had been painful enough. Ty thought he might have whimpered through the whole process.
    “Great,” Ty muttered as his father chuckled and took the mangled backpack and Ty’s knife just as Deuce held up the cloth, indicating for Zane to take the canteen.
    “Ready?” Zane asked.
    Ty glared at him. “Just do it quick,” he requested.
    Glancing to Deuce, Zane waited until he nodded to start pouring the water in a thin, slow stream. Deuce held the cloth under it briefly, took Ty’s hand, and began scrubbing at it, hard and fast. Ty just closed his eyes and turned his head slightly, breathing in the cool air of the mountain as the little torn bits of skin were ripped up and away. It wasn’t as bad as he’d been expecting. He supposed most of the pain was coming from the bruising rather than the open wounds. He was almost positive the nerves around those were all dead, now, anyway.
    When he looked back down at it, most of the dried blood that had caked his fingers and palm was gone, and Deuce was slathering it with ointment and wrapping it carefully with the strips of his T-shirt.
    Ty sighed and looked up at his father, who was standing aside and watching with a frown. He met his dad’s eyes and gave a weak smile. They both knew how bad this could turn.
    Zane picked up the mold he’d made and held it out. “All right, into the splint,” he said.
    Ty placed his hand into it, wincing as his palm settled. Deuce waited until Ty gave him a nod; then he began anchoring the splint to Ty’s arm with an Ace bandage from the first aid kit.
    “I gotcha a sling, here,” Earl announced as he held up what had once been Deuce’s spare pack. “Might be better off without it,” he advised.
    Ty shook his head. He needed to keep it up more than he needed that hand to walk. “Let me have the damn thing,” he muttered as he pulled his hand away from Zane and stood slowly. He’d found if he rose too quickly, his head would swim and his vision would blur. He pulled the straps of the mangled backpack close to his body, essentially tying his arm to his chest. It would fuck with his balance and probably end up making him fall on his face, but it was better than the alternative. When he’d adjusted it, he flopped his good hand to his side and looked around at the others. “Let’s divvy up the shit and get going,” he suggested.
    As Earl and Deuce picked through the rest of the supplies spilled on the ground, Zane stood slowly, only a couple feet from Ty, keeping his eyes on him the whole time. He took a step closer and reached out to untwist one of the straps and tie it more securely. “There you go,” he murmured.
    Ty found it difficult to meet his eyes as he thought about a similar action Zane had taken in a New York hotel room almost a year ago. Now, just as then, his heart beat a little faster because of it. But he nodded in thanks and smiled as he tried to fight back the hint of warmth it caused. I love you . The thought had haunted him all night, almost as much as the sound of the cougar’s scream.
    Zane’s fingers lingered where Ty’s T-shirt met his neck, pressing against the warm skin for just a few moments longer than necessary. “Come on. There’s beer and apple pie waiting,” he said.
    “Can’t wait,” Ty muttered. He reached out and socked Zane in the stomach as soon as the other two men had turned away and started off down the trail.
    “Ow!” Zane huffed, rubbing the spot as he hefted the remaining backpack. “Asshole.”
    Ty grinned