A/N: I contemplated adding these 1st paragraphs to Chapter 23. I would really like your feed back on doing so. I want to thank everyone who has taken the time to read this story.

Trees flew past the Doctor as Harry's hooves pounded the ground as the animal galloped at a punishing pace. The horse responded to his encouragement, but as exhaustion took hold, his pace began to slow. Sweat coated the horse's body. The Doctor heard Sam's voice telling him to slow down, but he couldn't. All he could think of was ripping the mind of whoever hurt Donna apart. The sight of Sam pulling next to him and leaning to grab Harry's reins infuriated him. He jerked the horse sideways, but Sam managed to grab a rein pulling the horse to a stop.

"Your killing him, Doc!" Sam yelled as he ducked away from the Doctor's fist. "I know, you think Miss Donna is in trouble, but you're not going to help her if our horses drop dead. You can't run a horse flat out like this. Turn up the road. There is a farm a half mile up. We need fresh horses and then we canter - cavalry style. We'll get home faster with living horses!"sed his head. "How far?" the Doctor asked as he swung back up in the saddle. Sam waited for several seconds making sure that the Doctor followed his lead. He motioned to the Doctor to follow as he led the way to a side road.

The Doctor ran his hand across the back of his neck in frustration. He looked at Harry and Sam's horse. Both hung their heads with their sides heaving as they tried to recover from the hard run. The Doctor ran his hand down Harry's sweat slicked neck before drying his hand on his pants leg. "I'm so sorry, my friend." he whispered in the exhausted horse's ear. We'll walk to the farm okay?"

A half mile down the road, Sam brought them to a small farm not much different from one where he'd live until a few short months ago. The pasture contained nearly a dozen mostly dark bay horses that resembled Harry. The Doctor immediately recognised the Arabian influence in their bloodlines. They stopped and dismounted by the stables, and Sam headed for the house. A few minutes later, he returned with a gnarled old man walking with a cane by his side. The man moved surprising well as he came to meet the Doctor.

"So," the old man reached out with a gnarled hand to shake the Doctor's hand, but spoke with a hint of suspicion in his voice, "Sam tells me, you want to borrow a couple of my horses."

"Mr?" the Doctor said softly.

"The name is Augustus Jacobs. Sam says this is an emergency."

"Yes sir. It very much is, it's my wife. I will make sure they are returned safely. I just ask you look after our horses. I ran them a bit hard."

"So I can see. My nigger will fetch those two geldings. Normally, I don't loan out my horses, but since it's Sam, I will and I won't charge you a fee. We'll take good care of your horses."

The Doctor winced at the terminology the man used, but he had little choice, but to ignore it. He glanced over the horses the old man had indicated, They were both strong deep chested bays. Their dish faces showed the Arab blood. "They're hot bloods - with endurance - yeah?"

"They're half Arabian and half Thoroughbred. They'll get you home with speed to spare." The old man walked over to Harry and rubbed his hand across the horse's trembling neck and down his legs. "This here one; he's half hot-blood and half whatever. He's a good one, shame they gelded him. I'll see to it, he's fit when you get him back."

"Thanks," the Doctor muttered as the slave entered the paddock to grab the two horses and bring them out for saddling. Ten minutes after their arrival, the Doctor and Sam were making their way down the road. It seemed to take forever before they covered the half mile to the main road. The Doctor wasted no time in spurring his horse into a steady canter.

The few miles left flew past in a blur of scenery. His mind filled with images of Donna bloodied and broken lying on a road somewhere, the Doctor resisted the urge to spur the horse underneath him faster. He'd nearly killed Harry, he wouldn't make that mistake twice. He focused his attention with all the ways that he intended to make whoever hurt Donna pay. He knew whom it was, but he had to know for sure just how many people he would toss into space. He glanced over at Sam who was now dead even with him. The Doctor had no doubt the man thought he was crazy. It wouldn't matter though. Sam would stand with him when the time came.

o0o

The families of Sam's men and the slaves ran to the front yard to watch Eb and the men spur their horses to race away from Barrow Manor. As the air cleared from the dust kicked up by the hooves, three of the women disappeared into the house. They didn't know anything other than something truly terrible had happened, and that meant someone would need care. Belle and Cora set up what had become the sick room. Unsure of who might be hurt, Mam checked Miriam's room in case they needed the space. The room was spotless. Miriam took enormous pride that she had a room close to her mother in the big house. Miss Donna had given her a doll that sat proudly on top of the coverlet. Mam moved the doll to the dresser where her baby could see it. She filled the pitcher with fresh water and placed a stack of clean towels and bandages at the bedside. Her breath hitched as she tried to hold back the tide of fear flooding her soul, but she couldn't quite stop the tears from sliding down her face. She'd only had Miriam back for three months, and now - Sally couldn't feel her baby anymore. The thought that white trash had hurt her baby or maybe ... soon she might have to watch the doctor use those bandages on her precious child.

"Whatever happened, Eb will bring them home." The gravelly voice came from the doorway.

Mam turned to see Mrs Evans watching her. Mam wiped her tears as the white woman walked into the room. It wouldn't do to let a white woman see her weakness. The woman reached and gently took her hand. She turned it palm up studying the lines and creases comparing them to her own. Mam's heart raced with uncertainty. The white woman seemed fascinated. It didn't enter Mam's mind to pull away; weird or not, the woman was still her better. The contact lasted for several seconds before Mrs Evans dropped her hand, and held out her own.

"They ain't much different, are they? Exceptin' for the colour, they ain't any different at all. We hold them the same when they're born; we change their napkins the same, and we hold'em to our breasts; all just the same. Our hands smack their behinds when they're mouths get carried ahead of their brains. We wash their clothes, and we cook their food - all the same, don't we?" She folded Mam's hand together in prayer, " We put them together and we pray for their souls - all just the same. We're not different at all."

"Ma'am?" Confusion etched itself on Mam's face and filled her voice.

"Today, Mam - we are just two mothers. I will finish this room for whoever needs it, and then - we will make sure that Miss Donna's room is ready for her. Go on now, make sure the medical kit is ready like she showed ya, and then we'll go up."

Mam sniffled, and then used her apron to wipe her nose. "Yes ma'am." When she reached the doorway, she turned back to see Mrs Evans fold back the covers. "Mrs Evans?"

"Yes."

"Thank you, ma'am."

"Go on now. We have to get ready," the woman replied gently.

Twenty minutes after they left, every man, woman and child on Barrow Manor stood in the yard waiting for signs that the men were returning. The shout went up just as the carriage turned with the horses still running hard. Charlie pulled the exhausted team to halt in front of the house and hopped down with the rider carrying Miriam right behind him. "Tripp and Will have both been shot," Charlie yelled.

The men swarmed the carriage as they lifted first Will and then Tripp's unconscious bodies from the seats. The man holding Miriam passed her down to Thomas' waiting arms. They all headed for the house with the wounded.

"Jax, get a fresh horse and make sure that the doctor and the law don't get lost," Eb ordered. "Charlie, head back south and see if you can spot the Boss." He didn't bother to wait for an answer as he followed everyone into the house. Thomas had laid Miriam on the settee while Tripp and Will were taken to the rooms. He could hear Addemenia keening at the sight of Will's limp body as the men laid him on Miriam's bed. He followed Tripp's mother into the room. Belle sent Cora to tend Will while she ripped Tripp's shirt and removed the blood soaked petticoat to expose the hole in his shoulder. She and his mother immediately began cleaning the wound.

"I sent Nat for the law and a doctor. How is he?"

"He's alive," his mother responded tersely. "What about Will?"

"He's got a ball in his chest. I don't think he's gonna make it. The Boss will kill Matt Simmons over this."

"If he don't," Mrs Evans head snapped up, "I damn sure will." Her voice dripped with fury as Tripp let out a small groan. "Check on Will. I can hear that girl crying; she ain't all together as it is. This could send her over."

Eb nodded and headed next door. Even from the doorway, he could see by Will's ashen colour that he'd nearly bled to death. Cora already had the blood soaked shirt and bandage stripped. Addemenia clung to Will's limp hand as Sally cleansed the wound. Will's chest barely rose with each shallow breath. He showed no sign of regaining consciousness. Eb swallowed hard. How could Matt Simmons be so incredibly stupid? "How is he?" he asked when he found his voice. Neither woman said anything when they looked up.

"Mister Eb, the doctor's here and the Sheriff." Eb turned to see Nat with tears streaming down his face. The scared old man looked as grey as Will as he watched the women work over the motionless young man. Eb knew how much the old man cared for Will. They had formed almost a father - son relationship; he couldn't let him just stand there and grieve.

"Nat, get the Sheriff and the doctor something to drink. They'll be thirsty after such a ride." Eb ordered gently as he headed for the drawing the drawing room.

"Yes, suh," Nat answered with a hollow voice.

o0o

The last mile before home, Sam and the Doctor spurred the horses into a full run. They had raced a quarter mile when they saw Charlie racing toward them. The two men pulled up to wait for the frantic boy to reach them.

"Boss, Sam, Miss Donna-" Charlie was breathless when he reached them.

"What happened?" the Doctor snarled.

"One of Simmons gang of slavers took her. They shot Mr Tripp and Will -" He didn't get the chance to finish as the Doctor pushed his horse past and spurred him into a dead run. He was completely unaware of the two behind him.

It took less than ten minutes to reach home. The Doctor turned up the lane and raced to the circle. The horse had barely pulled to a stop before the Doctor jumped from its back. He ignored the shouts of iBoss/i as he raced the path to the house and burst in shouting for Mam. A stranger stepped in front of him bringing his forward movement to a stop.

"Who the hell are you, and what are you doing in my house?" the Doctor shouted.

"Boss," Eb ran to meet him. "I tried to stop you. This here's the Sheriff."

Before either man knew what happened, the Doctor had Eb by the lapels shaking him in fury, "Eb what happened to Donna; where's Miriam?" He was hardly aware of the sheriff pulled him away.

"Mam took her upstairs, she was nigh on to hysterical. It took a bit to calm her down."

"Doctor Noble, I'm Sheriff Cummings. They left this note with the girl."

The Doctor didn't think it was possible for his fury to grow, but as he read the poorly worded, barely legible letter, he wanted to explode. He turned and ran the staircase two steps at a time to find Mam standing outside the spare room next to Donna's. He stood frozen staring at Mam's grief stricken face unsure of what to say. "I -"

"She heard you, Boss. I wouldn't let her back up."

"Did they hurt her?"

"No, Mr Charlie, he had to slap her to calm her down, cuz she couldn't stop screamin'. The doctor gave her somethin' to help her before he went in with Mr Tripp. Belle and Addemenia are with Will. It don't look good."

The Doctor nodded, and then went into Miriam's room. The sight of the child lying so quietly nearly sent him to his knees. He'd promised her a better life and failed. Again.

"Hey, sweetie," he called gently. It was a relief when she sat up. He dropped to his knees beside the bed and wrapped her in his arms. "I'm so sorry," he murmured softly as she buried her head against his chest sobbing.

"Doctor, they shot 'em. They killed them. I tried to bring them home, I did. They grabbed Miss Donna right out of the carriage. She fought and then the man said he'd snap my neck. They were gonna kill me too." She sobbed between words.

"Tripp and Will are not dead; you brought them both home. I promise, I will get Donna back, it's going to be okay. You sleep now." Without caring who watched, he placed his fingers to her temples and eased her into a dreamless sleep. The Doctor laid her back making sure to tuck the coverlet around her shoulders. The outline of someone's hand, probably Charlie's, had begun to bruise her cheeks. Before she fell asleep, he'd caught a name; Horace Means. He drew a sharp breath before he turned to face Mam. Her dark brown eyes bore into his soul making him swallow before he spoke. "Miriam will sleep for a couple of hours."

"How did you -"

"I didn't do anything," he lied. "The draught that the doctor gave her just kicked in. I forgot where I was, Mam. I should never have agreed to let Donna go to that meeting. This is all my fault. I am sorry; they will pay for what they've done."

"Boss, you are a good man, don't you do nuthin' to get yourself into trouble. We need you. We need both of ya." Mam reached for his hand. "You calm yourself, your hands are cold as ice."

"I will be fine. I'm going to check on the boys." Without warning, he gathered the trembling woman in his arms and kissed the top of her head. "Everything will be fine." When he turned away, he didn't see Mam's absolutely stunned expression. No white man had ever hugged her that way.

By the time the Doctor reached the bottom of the stairs, his emotions were under tight control. The look in his eyes told everyone waiting for him that Matt Simmons had unleashed an old rage. Sam met his friend at the bottom of the stairs, but said nothing. He just nodded and turned away. The Doc had lost one wife, he wasn't about to lose another. The Doctor ignored the Sheriff as he headed for the back of the house. The doors to both rooms were closed. Unsure of which man lay in what room, he knocked on the door of the sick room first and walked in. The doctor had finished extracting a ball from Tripp's shoulder. His bloody instruments lay in a pan of blood stained water. The man paid little attention as he finished cleaning and then closed the wound. Belle said nothing as she immediately brought a fresh pan to clean blood from his skin.

"Do you know how to dress a wound, girl," he said as he clipped the last stitch.'

"Yes suh, Cora and me will get it dressed proper."

"I'll leave laudanum with your master."

The man turned to see the Doctor staring at him. "Doctor Noble, I presume."

The Doctor straightened. "Yeah, I am. How is he?"

"He hit his head when the shot knocked him off the horse. He has a concussion, but both pupils are equal. The bullet missed the nerves to his arm, so he will keep use of it, but he's lost a fair amount of blood. I have managed to get that under control, and get the bullet is out. Barring any infection, he will pull through. I'm sorry to say, I can't say the same for your slave. The ball missed his lung, but it's close to his heart. My hands aren't steady enough for such delicate surgery. I was told that you were a surgeon before coming here. I will be happy to assist if you want to try."

"Let me check him, I have a bit of a deadline." The Doctor walked over to Tripp. "We had one helluva a party last night, hey. Donna has plans to marry you off, so don't you die on me. Your mum and Donna will not be happy," the Doctor said gently.

The Doctor drew a breath and faced the physician with a cold smile. "Shall we?"

The Doctor made sure that he shields were firmly in place before he let himself go near Sally. Since the moment he'd felt Donna's terror, he'd kept the alien woman's probing mind at bay. She was a powerful telepath as well as a psychic. He did not want her fear adding to his own emotions. When she looked up to see him, she let out a small sob of relief. The struggle to keep her panic from affecting the humans was plainly written on her face, but only he knew what the look really meant. Addemenia sat staring at him with barely contained hatred. The sight of the white doctor behind him increased the malevolent look on her face.

"Sally, take Addy out," the Doctor ordered softly.

"Mastah, no," Addemenia sobbed as Sally pulled the girl's hand from Will's.

The Doctor ignored the hated word. "Take Addy out," he said a little more firmly. He patted the girl's shoulder as she passed trying to reassure her. When they were gone, he headed for the bed. He stopped himself from pulling out the sonic screwdriver tucked safely in his pocket. If he were alone, he would know instantly how severe Will's injuries, but the most he could do now was verify the human doctor's diagnosis. He borrowed the antique stethoscope to listen to Will's chest.

Will's eye's fluttered open. The brief look of confusion passed and a faint smile followed by a look of shame crossed the man's face. "Boss, I tried to get her away. I'm sorry, Boss."

"Yeah, I know," the Doctor said softly, "Will, you have a bullet next to your heart. I'm going to do my best to save you, but you have lost a lot of blood. We've stopped the bleeding, and I'm going to give you something to help you rest. I need you to hang on for me, okay?"

"Boss, I wanted to ask, can I jump the broom?" Will seemed oblivious to what the Doctor just said.

"What?"

"Me and Addy, we been sparkin'. Can we jump the broom?" His voice almost too weak to understand, he mumbled incoherently.

"The Doctor sucked in a breath. He hadn't even noticed the two were becoming close. "Well, you better take a good nap and not do anything to make her mad. She has a temper that one. How about, say six weeks from now? Does that sound good?" The Doctor lovingly rubbed Will's forehead, and once more reached into a mind to send someone to sleep. For a long moment, he just sat there listening to his own hearts. He needed to get Will into a stasis unit, or he would be dead in an hour. There was no way that a nineteenth century surgeon could save his life. Finally, he drew a breath and looked at the human Doctor.

"I don't think, he is strong enough to survive the surgery. He's asleep. If he is still alive when I get my wife back, I will do my best to save him. There is no reason for you to stay."

"Right then. I will leave you a good supply for laudanum. I am sorry, Doctor Noble. I have heard that you are a different sort of owner. It's plain, you are a kind man. I will be back in the morning to check on everyone. I pray you have your Mrs back by then."

The physician shook his head as he walked out leaving the Doctor to sit next to a slave. Once the door was closed, the Doctor pulled his sonic out and scanned Will. The bullet had lodged between two ribs. Every time Will's heart beat, the bullet grazed the muscle. The Doctor scrubbed his hand across his cheek and then made a decision. He would not let this boy die.

"Sally!" he yelled, "get in here."

"Yes, suh." She and Addy both nearly broke the door open.

"Addy, do you know what a stasis unit is?" he asked when the door closed. He ignored the surprised look on Sally's face.

"Yes, we used them on Aurelia, mostly for food storage, but they had them in the hospital."

"I need you to understand that the only way that I can save Will is to put him in one and that puts us - aliens at serious risk. If I don't; he will be dead in an hour. For this to work, I need you to pretend to sit with him. I am going to materialise my ship around him. Once, I have him in stasis, I am projecting a hologram in here. If anyone peeks, they will see you appearing to hold his hand. You have to stay in this room until I get back. I need Sally to come with me, so you will be alone. Can you do this?"

"You do this; he lives?"

"If, I do this; he stands a seventy-five percent chance of living. If, I don't; he stands none."

"Save him - please," she begged with tears in her eyes.

The Doctor nodded. "Bring me the medical kit," he ordered. A moment latter, he pulled out the hypospray, injecting first an antibiotic and then an anaesthetic to slow Will's heart. Once he was done, he left and headed for the back stairs. He slipped into the TARDIS's room and unlocked the ship's door. She instantly powered up as he approached the console and input the coordinates. "Please old girl," he pleaded softly as he released the handbrake, "We need absolute silence, and I need the med bay right there. Power up the stasis unit."

A moment later, the med bay appeared in the room as the ship coalesced silently in the room. Both Sally and Addy turned in circles as they tried to take in their new location. The Doctor, despite the seriousness, ran in from a hallway with a manic grin on his face. "It's a time machine. A sentient time machine. It's called a TARDIS," he explained breathlessly. He pulled Will's covers back as a tube slid out of the wall. A glass top opened. Addy stepped over to look inside the entirely white interior, and stared incredulously at the alien trying to save her Will's life. The Doctor grunted from the effort of picking the limp young man up and placing him inside the tube. Almost immediately, medical equipment appeared inside as the ship tended to her patient.

"The TARDIS will keep him stable. She will replace the blood that he's lost and protect his heart," he explained.

The space around them changed back to the little bedroom. When Addy looked away from the tube where Will lay sleeping, she sucked in a breath to see his likeness in the bed. "It's a hologram," he answered the unspoken question. The ship dematerialised, returning with her charge to the little room next to her pilot, but leaving behind the hidden holographic projector.

"Doctor, you are - amazing. That machine is amazing." Sally and Addy both just stared open mouthed. A soft knock on the door pulled them back to reality.

"Right then," he said as he flashed a tight smile, "it's going to be at least a couple of hours before I get back. Addy, take your place. Sally come with me. We are not done yet; first the humans, and then the Vot. Ready?" When they both nodded, he opened the door to Eb and the Sheriff.

"Sorry, Boss, he's getting restless," Eb apologised.

"Sorry, right," the Doctor apologised. "I'm sure you understand Sheriff, I have a responsibility to my people."

"Why would anyone, especially Matt Simmons want to kidnap your wife? The man is mean as a snake, but this is a bit much, even for him."

"I threw him off my land, and then, I outbid him at the slave auction in November. In fact, I outbid him by a lot. He resented it and beat me into the ground. He shot my slave Thomas for defending me. The police in Charleston has a warrant out for him, but - I think Sheriff, you already know that."

The Doctor watched the man in front of him blanch, but before he could speak the Doctor closed Will's door, and gently but firmly back him away from the entrance. "Now, have you got a plan on tracking the men that did this, or do I need to do that as well."

"Doctor, I am well aware that you think we're all in cohorts with Matt Simmons, but we're not. I will have a posse after the men if you can tell me whom it is I'm chasing. Matt Simmons is not this stupid, so I'm guessing you have someone else angry with you."

"Weell, I suppose you could say over time, I have angered many people. But in this place, and this time, Matt Simmons and his minions are it. Miriam said that the man leading the attack was Horace Means. Find him before my men do, they are not happy, and while I don't condone violence, I can't promise those men won't have a few bruises. Now, I have things to do. I need to get my wife back."

"I need to talk to your people; see what they remember."

The Doctor found himself laughing at the request. "Come here." He pulled the Sheriff to Tripp's room. "Unless you have magical powers, you might find it a bit hard," he said as he opened the door. Tripp's mother looked up from the bedside where she stood wiping her son's face. She flashed a worried smile at the Doctor, and then returned to trying to make Tripp comfortable. The Doctor nodded, closed the door and then turned to the Sheriff with whispers. "Tripp may be unconscious for hours; Will may not live through the afternoon, and Miriam is sedated. Who exactly do you want to interview - the horses?!"

"Let me take care of getting your wife back. Let the law handle this."

"Right - yes - of course. By all means, you handle whatever you want. I have work to do," The Doctor said as he pushed past the man. He needed Sally. With just a little luck, his plan of deception would work, and it all began with a psychic, telepathic alien from a dead world.

A/N number 2. I have a second story on this site that I revised quite a bit. I would like advice on whether to pull it and re-post it for the third time or just replace each individual chapter.