Cut and Run 6 - Stars and Stripes

thought Ty had fallen off his horse.
    Ty was a dead weight in their hands, and they had to carry him into the house together. Annie ran to her truck and retrieved the well-stocked bag she took with her on calls, and then she followed them in.
    Zane stood in the yard, stunned and staring at the open front door.
    “Z?”
    He turned to his father.
    “You fall apart later, you hear me? Your man saved my little girl today. You go in there and be strong for him.”
    Zane blinked at him, and then nodded. He headed for the house, putting one foot in front of the other. It was the only way he could manage to function.
    The boys had placed Ty on one of the sofas in the den. Annie was checking his pulse and blood pressure.
    “I don’t understand why he was even conscious,” she said to Zane when she realized he was there. “That dart should have dropped him before he could get off a shot, much less empty his clip. And he’s still partially responsive, even now. I don’t understand.”
    Zane nodded and ran his hand over Ty’s forehead, then leaned down to kiss it. “He has strange reactions. Two Tylenol will wire him up just like one of those five-hour energy shots. Benadryl makes him sick. Vicodin makes him stop breathing.”
    “Christ, there’s no telling what he’s going to do with this! I know he pulled the dart out; maybe he didn’t get a full dose. Maybe it hit bone. Get his shirt open, let’s see where it hit him.”
    Zane pulled out his knife and put the blade to the collar of Ty’s Henley.
    Ty reached up and grabbed his wrist. Annie screamed and dropped her stethoscope.
    “Don’t cut the shirt.”
    “Jesus, Ty, are you awake?” Zane tossed the knife to the floor and dropped to his knees beside Ty.
    “I hate Texas,” Ty said without opening his eyes.
    “Why does he keep saying that?” Mark asked from the doorway where he stood watching.
    “Obviously, he hates Texas!” Zane snapped. “Why shouldn’t he? It keeps trying to kill him!”
    Ty’s head lolled to the side.
    “Ty?” Annie asked as she leaned closer to him. “Can you hear us?”
    Ty groaned.
    “Baby?” Zane whispered. He rested his chin on the couch, letting his nose touch Ty’s. He closed his eyes and put his hand against Ty’s cheek. “Are you in there?”
    “I feel weird, Zane.”
    Zane fought back a sob of laughter and ran his hand through Ty’s hair.
    “What in the world is going on in here?” Beverly demanded as she came into the room. She saw Ty on the sofa and put her hands over her mouth. “Oh my God!”
    “He got shot with a tranquilizer dart,” Mark told her. He and the others were staying out of the way, watching from the doorway.
    “Will he live?”
    “We think so,” Annie answered as she checked his heartbeat again.
    “Oh my. We have guests coming, is he bleeding on the upholstery?”
    Zane raised his head, meeting Annie’s wide eyes. Zane pushed to his feet and rounded on his mother, fire boiling through his veins.
    “You bitch,” he growled, sounding stunned even to his own ears.
    Her eyes widened and her jaw dropped.
    Joe turned and ran for the door, yelling, “Harrison!”
    “How dare you talk to me like that!” Beverly shouted.
    Zane felt Annie’s hand on his arm, pulling at him and trying to calm him. He shook her off. “The only thing you give a damn about is your reputation and that goddamned party. You have a man who could be dying on your couch and you’re bitching about the upholstery?”
    “You said he wasn’t dying!”
    “Not the point, Mother! Jesus Christ!”
    “It’s his job to risk his life for law and order, and that is precisely what he’s doing.”
    “He’s not here because it’s his job! He’s here because he loves me!”
    Beverly’s eyes widened and she shook her head, looking from Ty, lying half-conscious on the couch, and back to Zane. “Well, the young man is obviously confused, Zane. Shame on you for taking advantage. As soon as he wakes, I expect him to be on the first flight home.” Then she turned and stormed out of the room.
    Zane shouted in frustration and ran both hands through his hair.
    “Zane,” Annie whispered.
    Zane glared at the threshold, peripherally aware of Mark and Cody watching him, and of Joe and Harrison coming through the front door.
    “Zane,” Annie said again, more insistent.
    Zane turned to look down at her and Ty. She was perched on the edge of the couch near his hip, her hand on Ty’s chest. Ty’s fingers grazed the oriental