Page 152 of Sugar Daddies


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That horrible moment when time stands still. When you see the inevitable, the horror unfolding right in front of you, but you are powerless to do shit about it.

I couldn’t tell you the moment my breath caught in my throat, when that instinctual sense of dread enveloped me and chilled me to the bone. Their jump just didn’t look right, didn’t feel right, and had me pushing through to the barrier before they’d even fallen, helpless and petrified as our beautiful girl went tumbling.

Samson’s legs went from under him, and he went forward, and Jesus, they landed so hard, both of them, and there was a scream, a horrible scream as she took his weight, a horrible thump as they landed and slid.

And then she was still. Our beautiful girl was still.

Samson writhed on the floor, and there was blood. His eyes were wild and frantic, his instincts raging as the officials rushed over.

And so did we. Rick and Debbie, and David, too. All four of us piling over the rope.

Katie’s eyes fluttered as she regained consciousness, her gaze flicking around before the horror came rushing back. Her face contorted with pain, her leg still stuck under Samson’s shoulder, and she was ashen, so ashen.

“My leg!” she screamed. “It hurts! It hurts so bad!”

The officials were trying to stop Samson struggling, but he was wild, his legs flailing. He couldn’t get a grip against the slope of the bank, trying desperately to get enough leverage to take his own weight and failing. Both of his front legs were bloody, but one looked worse, his hoof hanging awkwardly as he flailed.

I felt sick. So fucking sick.

Not so much at the injury, but at the expressions on the faces of the people who knew this kind of shit. The people calling for medical assistance on their walkie-talkies.

They hitched Samson enough to free Katie’s leg, and she screamed a terrible scream as they pulled her out, and pulled her clear. Her mother was at her side, and so were we, trying to tell her it would be alright, that she would be alright, but she wasn’t even listening. Her eyes were fixed on Samson and were streaming with tears.

“Help him,” she said, and her hand clutched at mine. “I don’t care about me, just help him! Oh God, Carl, don’t let them hurt him. Please don’t let them hurt him!”

She pushed me towards him, and I moved, a tentative step towards the fallen animal. And I was impotent, for the first time in my adult life I didn’t know what the fuck I should do.

The paramedics arrived, and gave Katie some oxygen, painkillers, too, talking in calm voices as they tried to examine her leg. They made her lie flat and fastened her into a neck brace, splinted her leg as she cried into the oxygen mask, and I was scared, so fucking scared. I shot Rick a pitiful look and he was ashen, too, crouched at Katie’s side while she death-gripped his forearm, her mother on the other side of her with tears in her eyes.

I closed the distance between me and Samson, and David appeared at my side. He gave me a look that said this was futile, and his knowledge of eventing horses filled me with absolute dread.

“We have to save that horse,” I said under my breath. “Whatever it takes, David.”

He nodded, patted my shoulder.

A guy who was clearly a vet was crouched at Samson’s forelegs as a couple of stewards held the animal down, and his face was stern.

“How bad is it?” I asked. “Please tell me you can fix him.”

My heart was in my throat as he tipped his head from side to side. “We need to get him up, he fell awkwardly, I hope he can stand.”

“And if you can’t get him up? If he can’t stand? What happens then?”

David gripped my elbow, and I knew. And so did Katie.

“No!” she screamed. “Carl, don’t let them! Whatever it takes, Carl! Please don’t let them hurt him!”

It broke my heart to see her there, in so much pain, with so much fear. The paramedics busied themselves preparing her for the ambulance, and Rick and Debbie looked so helpless, as helpless as I felt.

“He has to be able to support his weight,” David said, his voice so low. “If they can’t get him up, Carl…”

I shook my head. “I can’t even begin to tell you how much this horse means to that girl. We have to get him on his feet.”

He nodded.

“Clear some space,” the vet said, and they gave Samson some room. He braced his forelegs on the ground, even the mangled one, and attempted to push himself up. I held my breath, willed fate to give him a break, but the poor brute slipped and fell, collapsed back against the bank, his sides heaving. I cursed under my breath.

The vet shrugged, shot me a fatalistic glance.

Source: www.allfreenovel.com
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