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1304, Steve: I’m going next door to hlep check fences before the storm sets in but shuld be home before you still x
It’s nearly 4pm by the time Eddie gets the text - the cell coverage is patchy out on Benny’s ranch. Eddie and Ozzy are both soaked through from the rain, cold and a little miserable, but they’d managed to move the cattle to higher ground to keep them out of any potential flooding.
The storm’s shaping up to be a big one, the sky dark and angry-looking, and Eddie couldn’t wait to get home and dry and wrap himself around Steve.
1603, Eddie: How did it go, are you home?
Mrs Driscoll’s property next door to theirs is large, and most of it was grazed out by cattle owners renting the fields. The last thing they needed was for wind or floodwater to take out a weak fence, and then the stock would be spread everywhere and could get out onto the road.
While he waits for a reply, Eddie leads Ozzy to the cover of the barn with the other workers and untacks her, giving her a pat as she sighs heavily and shakes raindrops from her mane.
“I know,” he murmurs. “Home time now, huh?”
It’s a weekend, and they wouldn’t normally be working had it not been for the sudden weather warning – Benny had put a call out to whoever could come in and help shift the cows, and Eddie had trailered Ozzy down here himself to help out.
By the time Eddie’s got Ozzy loaded up and is heading for home, there’s still no reply from Steve.
It’s ok, he tells himself. He’s probably busy with the horses, or stuck talking to Doris again.
Once home, Eddie quickly offloads Ozzy and turns her loose, doing a quick headcount of the horses in the field.
Butterscotch is gone.
Which means Steve’s probably still next door.
The wind whips through the trees overhead, and Eddie’s teeth chatter as he runs for the cover of the front porch, where he pulls out his phone and dials Steve’s number.
It rings through to his voicemail.
He can barely even see Doris’ property through the driving rain, and Eddie thinks it’s pretty likely they’ll lose power soon.
Worry starts to fester away in his gut. He heads inside, dialing Doris’ landline as he walks, absentmindedly topping up Dart’s food bowl and stripping his wet outer clothes as he waits. The elderly lady takes a long time to answer sometimes, and Eddie’s heart thumps nervously as he pictures her waddling slowly towards the phone.
“Hello?” she answers finally.
“Mrs Driscoll? It’s Eddie.”
“Eddie, how are you? Not underwater yet, I hope.”
Mrs Driscoll hadn’t liked Eddie at first, and had made no secret of it – but Eddie didn’t take it to heart, the old lady was just fiercely protective of Steve. He’d worn her down over the course of several months, and now she treated him like a grandson of sorts.
“No, not yet. Is Steve there?” he asks quickly.
There’s a pause.
“Well, he came over earlier, said he was riding out to have a look at my fences, he was worried about the cows getting into the lower fields in this rain. That was a few hours ago though, I thought he’d be home by now.”
Eddie swallows, ears starting to ring.
“He isn’t. And he isn’t answering his phone.”
“Perhaps he got delayed fixing a fence?” Doris suggests.
“Mmm, maybe,” Eddie replies, but panic’s starting to rise in him. “I’m gonna head out and have a look for him.”
“The weather’s turned really nasty out there, Eddie,” Doris says carefully. “I’m not sure you want to be riding in that.”
“I need to look for him,” Eddie insists, then forces himself to take a breath. “I need to check he’s ok, what if something’s happened?”
“Well, don’t go too far. And keep your phone close, I’ll ring if he turns up at the house, ok?”
Eddie nods, then reminds himself Doris can’t see him, and closes the call with her and changes into dry clothes in record time.
He strides back towards the door. Grabs several spare jackets, throws one on, smells Steve and realizes it’s one of his, brings another to tie behind the saddle, and then he’s back out in the pouring rain and running for the barn.
He can’t take Ozzy.
The mare’s been working all day and she’s exhausted.
He settles on Scoops. The horse is old, but he’s the most experienced they have, and if anyone can find Steve it’s the horse he’s had for the longest.
As quickly as he can, Eddie tacks the horse up, reminding himself to thank Steve for being slightly paranoid and always stowing extra stuff in the saddle bags – basic first aid supplies, a waterproof sack for storage, granola bars – you name it, it was probably in there.
The spare clothes get stuffed in the sack, and then Eddie’s swinging up onto Scoops and steering the horse towards Doris’ place.
Thunder booms overhead, and rain lashes down around them. Eddie pushes Scoops as quickly as he dares, pausing only to throw open gates, and the gelding picks his way cautiously but willingly across the slippery mud below his hooves.
Where would Steve be?
Mrs Driscoll had mentioned the lower fields, so Eddie figures he’ll start there. He’ll have to be quick – with the rain this bad, chances are they could already be starting to flood.
Scoops lopes across the fields, passing a group of cattle hunkering down under the trees, safe on the higher ground. Despite his waterproof layer and warm clothes underneath, Eddie’s already feeling the cold, his hands going numb on the reins and god he hopes to hell Steve’s not stuck out in this somewhere.
He’s forced to slow down several times when the trail to the lower fields narrows – the wind has already brought down several branches, and where Steve would just be able to jump his horse over them, Eddie doesn’t have that level of experience or confidence, and has to steer Scoops carefully around some of them.
“Steve!” he yells into the wind, hopes it carries his voice far, hopes Steve can somehow hear him.
He calls over and over again as he rides, but gets no response. Taking a moment to shelter under a tree, he checks his phone again, but there’s no messages. Heart hammering in his chest, he calls Doris.
“I haven’t seen him yet, Eddie,” she answers immediately, sounding considerably more worried now.
“I’m at the lower fields, he’s not here,” Eddie shouts to be heard above the wind.
“I’m going to call around, get some more help out there,” Doris tells him. “You be careful.”
Eddie shoves his phone in a deep pocket, out of the rain.
He’s shaking. From the cold, from worry, from the sheer need to see Steve healthy and alive.
Scoops shifts below him, snorting anxiously, rain cascading down his grey neck.
“It’s alright,” Eddie murmurs, but his voice trembles.
Steve would know what to do.
But Eddie’s just sat here, twisting his head to look in all directions, rain dripping down the back of his neck, and he can’t think, he doesn’t know what to do next, where to look…
There’s a neigh from the distance.
Scoops’ ears prick up, and he stares in the direction of the sound.
The noise comes again, and Scoops calls out in return.
“That Butterscotch?” Eddie questions hopefully, looking down at Scoops. “Go find him, boy.”
He gives the horse a loose rein and nudges him forward, letting Scoops pick their direction, trusting the old horse to head towards his friend.
Finally, up ahead, Eddie sees a streak of orange through the heavy rain.
It’s Butterscotch, the horse tossing his head and whinnying, nostrils flared, anxious.
His saddle is empty, reins dragging through the mud by his front hooves.
Eddie’s stomach plummets to his feet.
And this…this is bad, because Steve doesn’t fall off easily, and it would take something serious to stop him from getting back on because his boyfriend’s stubborn as hell with the pain tolerance of a bull. Eddie kicks Scoops on faster, until they’re alongside Butterscotch and he’s able to grab his reins.
Butterscotch snorts, whites of his eyes showing, and Eddie strokes a frozen hand over his muzzle.
“Easy boy, you’re ok. Where’s Steve?”
The horse stamps a hoof, mud splashing up.
There’s tears on Eddie’s cheeks, mingling with the rain, because he doesn’t know what to do, it’s not like Butterscotch can just tell him where to go…
He pulls at the horse’s reins, but he stands firm.
“Come on, now’s not the time,” Eddie says through gritted teeth. “Walk on, come on.”
He’s gonna have to search this whole area, and hope that Doris sends help soon, because he can barely see a few feet in front of himself at times now.
“Steve!” he yells, still tugging at Butterscotch’s reins.
The horse shakes his head and snorts.
And Eddie stops.
Because Scoops is looking at something, something off in the distance behind Butterscotch, and the other horse is reluctant to go in the direction Eddie’s pulling him…
He changes tack. Turns Butterscotch around, guides Scoops forwards, and both horses go willingly, Butterscotch jig-jogging eagerly along beside them.
“This way, huh?” Eddie says, hope lighting a fire in him, and for a moment he forgets about how cold and damp he is, the prospect of finding Steve banishing any other thought.
They reach a gully. It’s not huge, but it’s fairly steep and the ground is slick mud now, with a stream of rainwater carving a path through the bottom of it. There’s several deep gouges in the mud at the top where there’s been some sort of struggle, where hooves had skidded and slid and scrabbled for purchase.
Steve’s lying motionless down below.
Eddie flings himself from Scoops’ saddle, slip-sliding his way down, caution out the window as the only thought going through his head is getting to Steve.
“Stevie, oh my god, can you hear me?”
He gets his hands on him. Steve’s pale and cold, lying in the mud, blood caked to the side of his face, eyes closed. There’s rocks down here, and Steve must’ve fallen, must’ve hit his head on one…
“Steve, Steve,” Eddie’s repeating, patting at Steve’s shoulder, his cheek, willing him to wake up but he’s not, and he might’ve been lying here for hours and he’s probably hypothermic and Eddie’s panicking again and wishing there was someone else here to help, someone capable, someone knowledgeable…
He breathes. In and out. Thinks about what Steve would do, if their situation was reversed.
He can’t panic, not now. Steve needs him.
Eddie presses his fingers to Steve’s neck.
And waits.
There’s a pulse, and Eddie doesn’t have the medical knowledge to know if it’s a good pulse or not but his heart’s beating and that’s all that matters.
The first aid supplies.
They’re with Scoops’ saddle, along with the spare clothing, and Eddie’ll have to climb back up there and get them –
But when he glances back up to the top of gully, Scoops is already halfway down.
Eddie has to close his eyes, just for a moment, because the bank is steep and Scoops is an old boy and if he breaks a leg getting down here Steve’ll never forgive Eddie for bringing him out here and –
Scoops grunts as he slides down the last bit of the bank, sitting back hard on his haunches before skidding to a halt. He lowers his head, sniffing at Steve’s face and nudging him.
“Careful, boy,” Eddie tells him, but he strokes his neck gratefully as he grabs the small bag of first aid supplies from the saddle bag and the jacket from the pouch.
At the very least, they’re much more sheltered from the wind down here, the high sides of the gully blocking it. Eddie’s able to lay the jacket over Steve and keep out the worst of the rain, and then he presses a rolled-up bandage to the side of his head with one hand and dials Doris’ number with the other.
“I’ve found him, he’s hurt, we’re at the bottom of the gully by the lower fields, tell people to look for the chestnut horse,” he says in a rush as soon as she answers, looking up at Butterscotch looking down at them from the top of the gully.
“Eddie, you’re breaking up dear, you’ve found Steve?” Doris’ voice is patchy, fading in and out, and Eddie pulls the phone away to curse and then brings it back up to his ear.
“YES,” he yells, and repeats his message several times until he’s sure Doris manages to catch it all.
And then he hangs up and hunches over Steve, doing his best to block out more of the rain.
“It’s alright Stevie, helps coming,” he murmurs, trying to rub some warmth into his shoulders, his arms, anything.
Steve stirs. His nose twitches, eyebrows pulling together, and Eddie leans in closer.
“Steve? Hey, can you hear me, sweetheart?”
“Eds?” Steve slurs, eyes still closed.
Eddie lets out a sob of relief.
“Yeah, it’s me, I’m here.”
“W’happened?”
“I don’t know, you must’ve fallen.”
There’s a moment of silence, and Eddie thinks maybe Steve’s slipped into unconsciousness again, but he shakes him gently and Steve croaks out: “Butterscotch?”
“He’s fine, he’s here, he led me to you. Him and Scoops.”
Scoops stands nearby, tail turned to the worst of the weather, head hanging low, watching the two of them quietly.
“He’s a good boy,” Steve whispers, and Eddie chokes on his tears again, thumb brushing over Steve’s cheek.
“He is. They both are.”
Steve shifts, half sitting up before Eddie can stop him.
“Hey hey just wait, just stay still, ok?”
Because he could have a spinal injury or anything, Eddie doesn’t know much about that but it’s possible, right?
“M’ok.”
“You aren’t. There’s help coming, we just have to wait, ok?”
“S’cold,” Steve mumbles.
“I know, I know, but you won’t be here much longer, ok?”
“You’re cold,” Steve repeats.
Eddie’s hands are shaking against Steve. He ducks down, kisses the side of his boyfriend’s head.
“Don’t worry about me,” he tells him.
“Always do,” Steve murmurs.
“I know, but let me do the worrying today, ok?”
“M’kay.”
They wait. In the pouring rain, listening to the thud of hoofbeats above them as Butterscotch paces back and forth along the top of the gully, with Steve sprawled half across Eddie. He’s moved around enough that Eddie’s no longer so worried about a spinal injury, and he’s more concerned with just how cold and wet Steve is. He’s got one arm around him, the other hand still putting pressure on the bleeding cut on his head. Every now and then, Steve mumbles something, and Eddie encourages him, doing his best to keep him awake as they wait.
It's killing Eddie, this wait.
But there’s no way he can get Steve back up this gully, and even if he managed it, what then? He’d have to somehow manhandle Steve up onto a horse alone and he can’t, they’ve just gotta sit tight and wait for help to find them.
After what feels like an eternity, he hears shouts.
“Down here!” he screams back. “We’re down here!”
Steve flinches at the noise, and Eddie squeezes him apologetically.
There’s a clammer of voices and hoofbeats from overhead, and Eddie sees a hand reach out and grab Butterscotch’s reins, and then a head appears at the top of the bank, looking down at them.
“Steve!” Robin yells, and then she’s sliding down in much the same way Eddie had, arriving at the bottom covered in mud and half-frantic.
“Robs?” Steve mumbles into Eddie’s sleeve.
“Go easy, he’s hit his head,” Eddie tells her, holding an arm up to stop Robin from launching herself at her best friend.
Robin nods, crouching down beside them instead and taking Steve’s hand in hers.
“Hopper’s here,” she tells them. “And Vickie, and Dmitri, and Benny, and a few other ranchers. We’ll get you outta here, Stevie.”
Hopper’s the next one to slide down the gully, and Eddie finds himself exhaling slowly in relief as Hopper checks Steve over with competent hands. As a prison guard, he knows his fair share about first aid, certainly far more than Eddie did. The only injury appears to be the one to Steve’s head, but hypothermia is a real concern at this point as well.
Hopper glances up at Eddie when he’s finished assessing Steve, rain dripping from the brim of his hat.
“You did well,” he tells him, and Eddie nods and swallows back a wave of emotion, holding Steve tightly. “Your uncle’s bringing his pick-up as close as he can get it, but we’ve still gotta get Steve to him, and then we can meet the ambulance at the road.”
“Can’t they send a helicopter or something?” Eddie asks, frustrated as Steve shivers against him.
Hopper shakes his head.
“Not in this weather.” He looks over to Scoops, and Eddie sees a plan starting to formulate behind his eyes. “That horse get down the bank?”
Eddie nods.
“Think he can get back up with Steve, if we find the easiest spot?”
“He’d literally die for Steve,” Robin tells Hopper. “If you point him where you want him to go, he’ll get there.”
Hopper grabs Scoops and leads him closer, giving instructions to Eddie.
“We’re gonna get Steve up here, and you’re gonna sit behind him and keep him in the saddle, you understand?”
“Can Scoops carry us both?”
“For a couple minutes he can, he’s a tough-looking horse. Once we’re up the top, we’ll reassess, alright?”
Dmitri joins them in the gully, with Vickie, Benny and the other ranchers holding the horses at the top.
Together, Dmitri and Hopper carefully get Steve to his feet. And he’s barely standing, swaying in their grip, but Eddie watches in amazement as he still manages to lift a foot into Scoops’ stirrup, autopilot kicking in after so much time spent in the saddle. The two men help him swing up and hold him steady as Eddie clambers up behind him, Robin hanging onto Scoops.
Eddie wraps his arms around Steve’s middle.
“Stay awake, sweetheart,” he murmurs into Steve’s neck, and his boyfriend grunts in acknowledgement.
Scoops huffs under the weight of the two men on his back but follows along behind Robin without complaint. Hopper and Dmitri find the gentlest point of the slope – it’s still steep, steep enough that a human trying to carry Steve would have little chance of getting up without slipping – but Scoops is nearly half a ton of sure-footedness and determination.
The horse powers up the slope, Vickie calling him from the top and Hopper giving him a gentle shove from behind. Eddie holds on tight, every muscle in his body screaming as he fights to keep himself and his half-conscious boyfriend in the saddle, until finally Scoops clears the gully with a grunt, sides heaving with effort.
Eddie slips out of the saddle, leaving a hand on Steve to keep him there, and helps Hopper drape a blanket across Steve’s shoulders.
With Eddie walking on one side and Hopper on the other to ensure Steve stays upright, they make their slow way against the wind towards the trail. Eddie slips several times, grabbing Scoops’ neck to avoid falling entirely, and the horse stands firm while Eddie steadies himself.
Steve’s awake, but barely, his head lolling with Scoops’ movement, but years of riding keep him in the saddle, along with Eddie’s death-grip on his thigh.
Finally, they see headlights up ahead, and Eddie makes out the shape of Wayne’s pick-up waiting for them on the trail, window-wipers working overtime.
Wayne scrambles out of the driver’s seat and runs to them, and Eddie thinks he’s never seen his uncle move so damn fast in his life.
He wraps an arm around Eddie, concerned eyes on Steve.
“Wayne, he…” Eddie stutters, not even sure what he’s trying to say, but Wayne squeezes him tight.
“It’s alright, Eds, he’ll be alright, lets get him to the truck,” Wayne hushes him, and Eddie nods, hands shaking as the adrenaline starts to flood out of his veins in the comforting presence of his uncle.
Between Eddie and Hopper, they get Steve out of the saddle and into the backseat of the pick-up. Eddie’s got his head in his lap, Robin squeezed carefully in beside his feet, and Vickie’s in the passenger seat, the rest remaining behind with the horses.
Steve’s heavy in Eddie’s lap, eyes closed, his skin ice-cold, and Eddie brushes trembling fingers across his cheek.
“Stay with me, sweetheart,” Eddie murmurs to him. “We’re nearly at the ambulance, ok?”
Wayne’s got the heater blasting, but Eddie’s teeth are chattering despite that, so he can only imagine how much worse Steve must be feeling.
Robin’s rubbing her hands across Steve’s leg, and Eddie locks eyes with her briefly and she looks so fucking scared. He reaches out, takes her hand, squeezes it.
“He’ll be ok,” Robin chokes out, and Eddie’s not sure if she’s saying it to him or to herself but he nods.
Wayne glances at them in the rearview.
“He’s gonna be just fine, you hear me? The hospital’ll get him fixed up.”
Steve grunts softly as the pick-up jolts over a bump, and Eddie holds him tighter.
“Sorry, Stevie,” he whispers.
“S’ok,” Steve croaks and Eddie loves him, he loves him so much and he’s gonna tell him over and over every chance he gets.
At the road, they switch into the waiting ambulance, Eddie travelling with Steve and the others following behind with Wayne.
Steve’s rushed right out the back when they arrive at the hospital, and for a moment Eddie’s left standing in the waiting room, dripping a puddle onto the floor from his wet clothes, wringing his hands together in front of himself, and he’s unsure what to do without Steve here, wishes he could’ve just gone back there with him…
Then Wayne’s got him, guiding him into a chair, taking off his wet coat and replacing it with a dry one, pressing a cup of something hot from the coffee machine into his hands.
Robin and Vickie get the same treatment, Wayne fussing over all three of them while they wait for news.
Finally, it comes, a doctor explaining that Steve’s in the early stages of hypothermia and has a concussion but that he’s stable and resting but needs to be kept in overnight for monitoring and he can have visitors one at a time.
Eddie goes first, there’s no question there – he knows Robin will be in to see Steve next, but she waves Eddie in before her.
Steve’s asleep, an IV in his arm, machines beeping rhythmically.
Eddie sits in the chair beside his bed and takes his hand, relieved to find it feeling much warmer than it had earlier. Steve shifts at his touch, eyes fluttering open, a tiny smile tugging at his lips.
“Hi, Stevie,” Eddie whispers.
“Hey,” Steve replies, voice hoarse.
Eddie brings his hand to his lips and kisses over his knuckles.
“You scared the hell out of me, sweetheart,” he tells him. His voice hitches, tears threatening to erupt again.
“C’mere,” Steve murmurs, pulling weakly at Eddie’s hand.
And Eddie goes, leaning forwards, his head on Steve’s chest and arm splayed across his middle. He’s careful not to bump any of the tubes hooked up to Steve but he needs this, needs to hold his boyfriend close and feel the warmth radiating from him.
“Thank you,” Steve whispers, eyes closed again. “For finding me.”
Eddie nods against Steve’s blankets.
“The horses helped.” He smiles through tears, feels a small rumble of amusement from Steve’s chest.
“Give them an apple from me when ya get home, ok?”
And Eddie’s dreading going home without Steve, back to an empty house, even if it’s only for one night – but someone’s gotta look after the animals and he can do it, he can do it for Steve.
“Even if Butterscotch did dump me down that damn ditch,” Steve mutters as almost an afterthought, and then he’s drifting off again, Eddie feeling his breathing even out and slow in his sleep.
Eddie smiles, knowing Steve’s not really mad, that he never could be at his animals.
“I love you,” he says, pressing a kiss to Steve’s collarbone.
Steve’s face twitches, and his fingers squeeze tighter where they’re interlocked with Eddie’s – even in sleep, he hears him, and Eddie thinks he’s never felt so warm in all his life.