“You will go and tell Duke Emberly what has happened. The hunt must be stopped.” Luke shuddered.
Though the hunt was moving away, there was always a chance they might come across her. If she had fallen off her horse, they might not see her until it was too late.
“But I can help.” Rodger insisted.
“Go and tell Duke Emberly what has happened. I will find Miss Pembleton.” Luke oriented his horse in the direction his brother had pointed, searching for signs of a trail.
“But-”
“-Go!” Luke roared, his frustration and panic bubbling beyond his control.
He did not wait for a response, instead digging his heels into his horse’s flanks and leaving his brother behind. He moved through the underbrush, barely paying attention to the branches that lashed across his face.
“Miss Pembleton!” He yelled.
“Help!” The terrified sound of her voice filled his ears. “Please!”
“I am coming!” He followed the sound of her voice, searching for any sign of her as he and his horse made their way through the dense woods.
He thought he heard a sound in the distance, but he could not be certain. He looked at the ground, searching for some sign of her. There was nothing. He felt mingled relief and fear spread through him.
“If she is not here, then she is still on her horse. Perhaps she has even got it under control.” Luke muttered, wishing with every part of his soul that it were true.
He pushed through the underbrush into a thinner patch of woodland. For a moment he felt panic. Which way had she gone?
“Help!” A distant scream floated towards him.
“Miss Pembleton!” he yelled back. “Hold on, Miss Pembleton!”
His horse began to canter, he dared not urge it into a gallop. If she had fallen from her own horse, it would be too easy to-No! I will not think like that.
He cupped a hand around his mouth as he yelled. The sound echoed around him, but there was no sound in return.
His blood turned to ice. It felt as though there were a vice around his chest. He shook his head.
“Miss Pembleton! Damn it, Emily!” he shouted her name, frantically looking for any sign of her.
There was no answer. He slowed his horse to look at the foliage around him. He saw broken branches and hoof prints, but no sign that anyone had fallen.She is still on her horse. Or at least she was.
“She definitely came this way.” He muttered to himself, moving his horse in the direction of the trail.
They emerged into a clear field. The sun was dazzling after the dimly lit forest. He held a hand up to his face, shielding it. He had lost his hat, probably whipped off by a branch.
“Emily!” he shouted as loudly as he could.
Several birds scattered, his horse shied and he calmed it. But there was no shout in return. Prickles of fear swept across his spine, icy sweat trickling down his neck.
“Think. I need to think. If the horse was startled, it would have most likely continued in a straight line.” He nodded and steeredhis horse in the most likely direction. “Emily!” he called and in the distance, he heard the whinny of a horse.
He squinted and saw something moving in the distance. He began to canter towards it, reigning in his urge to gallop. As he closed the distance, he let out a breath he did not know he had been holding. It was a horse.
But where was its rider? He stopped beside it, taking its reigns in his hand. It was definitely her horse, but where wasshe? With relief, he spotted a flash of red a short distance away.
Emily.She appeared to be leaning against some sort of rock.She must have fallen, she is probably just recovering her strength.
“Thank God!” He murmured, sliding from his own mount and moving towards the figure. “I should never have let you do this. I knew it was a foolish idea. That is the last time I let you do anything so foolhardy. I do not know what I was thinking, you could have been seriously hurt or worse!”
He’d meant to keep his voice low and calm, but his anger overtook his relief. “A lack of propriety is one thing, but risking your own safety is another. I do not doubt that you are a competent rider, but really a hunt is no place for a woman and this just proves it!”
