Deuce opened his mouth to respond, but Earl held up his hand and closed his eyes. Both of his sons snapped their mouths shut and lowered their heads, the argument ending before it could get in full swing.
“We stay together,” Earl ordered in a gruff voice. “We head out at first light. Not before. Ty’s right,” he said pointedly as he looked at Deuce. “He’s too weak to be trusted on a dangerous trail,” he said as he turned his eyes to Ty. Ty visibly flinched at his words, lowering his head. Zane watched his partner and then looked up to stare at Earl through the firelight.
“Get some sleep,” Earl continued, not commenting on the reactions. He could feel the unspoken accusations in Zane’s eyes. But despite what Zane Garrett might think, Earl knew his own son and how to handle him. Ty would walk through Hell and back to prove he could do something he wasn’t supposed to be able to do. Earl was determined to keep him walking no matter how much it hurt both of them. “Four hours to daylight,” he said roughly. He didn’t look at Zane or his sons again, instead stretching out on the bedroll with his back to the fire.
He didn’t want them to see the tears that threatened in his eyes.
WHEN Deuce awoke to the sound of chirping birds, his first thought was to chuck a rock at them. When he talked himself out of that, his mind turned to his brother, and he rolled over with a groan to check on Ty. He and Zane had placed Ty between them the night before, hoping to keep him warm during the chilly night.
Ty had thrashed and grumbled almost the entire night, fighting the fever and the periodic shivers that ran through him. But he was resting peacefully now, curled against Zane’s left side as if he were cold. Zane’s arm was wrapped around him, holding him close and keeping him warm. It would almost have been sweet under other circumstances, but Ty was too still. A bolt of cold fear shot through Deuce as he reached out to touch him.
He calmed when Ty mumbled at him and tried to bury his head under Zane. He was hot to the touch and far too pale, but he was still breathing, and that was all Deuce could ask for this morning.
“Ty, wake up,” Deuce said as he sat up and shook Ty’s arm. Ty groaned and rolled, burrowing further against Zane, who opened his eyes to look at Deuce blearily. “Come on, G-Man,” Deuce grunted as he shook his brother harder.
Ty awoke with a jerk and a gasp. He tried to sit up and reach for a knife Deuce knew he used to keep under his pillow, but the pillow wasn’t there, and neither was the knife. He looked around wildly for a brief moment, obviously trying to figure out where he was, why his hand was tied to his body, and probably wondering why he was awake. That was, if his fevered mind even allowed him to think instead of instinctively reacting.
For all Deuce knew, Ty might think he was back in the Gulf with his Recon team.
Zane sat up and slid a hand gently up and down Ty’s back, trying to calm him with soft murmurs Deuce couldn’t make out. It seemed to help, and Deuce carefully watched reality seep back into Ty’s eyes before he said or did anything. Even hurt and unarmed, Deuce knew his brother could be a dangerous man, especially if he was disoriented. Deuce would never have risked touching him in that state. Apparently that danger didn’t apply to Zane Garrett. Something else to add to the list of things that didn’t quite add up.
“You okay?” Deuce asked evenly.
Ty nodded and swallowed hard as he looked down at his hand.
“Dizzy?” Zane asked quietly. “Hot?”
“Yeah,” Ty answered immediately. He didn’t even try to make up a lie or deny that he was sick.
Zane lifted one hand to touch the backs of his fingers to Ty’s forehead and then his cheek. Ty closed his eyes with the contact. Shaking his head slightly, Zane glanced to Deuce. There was worry shining clearly in his dark brown eyes.
“We need to get going,” Deuce said needlessly.
“Let’s get you up,” Zane said to Ty, climbing to his knees and sliding his arm around Ty’s back so he could help him stand. Ty wrapped his arm over Zane’s shoulders and didn’t even bother trying to hide that he couldn’t have gotten up on his own.
“Fuck,” Deuce muttered under his breath as he watched. He saw Zane’s face slide into an immobile mask with flat, emotionless eyes as he took Ty’s weight onto himself. Deuce wondered for a moment about an ability like that, to so completely suppress and hide emotion. It wasn’t at all healthy. A groan from Ty drew his attention again. “You going to be able to go?” Deuce asked him in a low voice. Earl was already up and gathering their equipment.
Ty merely nodded jerkily and looked up, letting his arm slide away from Zane’s shoulders. His fingers dragged slowly across the back of Zane’s neck, as if he didn’t want to forget what the contact felt like. Deuce felt a pang of anger and sadness as he watched them. As sick as Ty was, the two of them were still careful of showing too much intimacy for fear of how Earl would react to it. Deuce swallowed against a knot in his throat and gritted his teeth.
Zane reluctantly let Ty go, but he only took one step back as he watched Ty waver slightly. Ty closed his eyes and swallowed hard, steadying himself before he nodded to them both. Deuce knew his brother was in bad shape just by the fact that he didn’t seem to be ashamed of needing help to stand.
“You ready?” Earl asked gruffly as he stood on the other side of the fire pit watching them.
“Yes, sir,” Deuce and Ty muttered in unison. Zane just gave him a nod as he hefted the backpack awkwardly.
Once they crested the ridge they’d decided not to attempt the night before, the trail was too precarious to go anything but single-file. Deuce limped heavily as he kept pace with Ty, who trudged in front of him. Their father was taking point, but he kept having to stop and turn to wait for them as they lagged behind his pace.
Deuce wasn’t really surprised when Ty finally came to a slow, almost rambling stop a couple hours later and merely fell to his knees without further warning. Still, it scared the hell out of him when he saw it. The fear and adrenaline overwhelmed any other emotion as Deuce clambered to get to him. Zane, bringing up the rear, almost barreled over him trying to do the same.
Ty was on his knees, eyes closed and breaths coming in harsh, pained gasps. He supported himself with just the one hand. He was sweating profusely even though he was shivering violently, his cheeks flushed with fever, and his eyes were glazed and distant, almost gray in color as he stared at the ground. Deuce reached for him, preparing to help him up.