AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Stepping back to look at him, she chewed on her lip. He was tied to Cash’s back as best she could get him and she was glad he had passed out. The saddle’s pommel had to be digging into his skin, but there was little she could do about it. She was not even sure she had tied him tight enough to keep him on the horse's back. If she had to, she would hold on to him with one hand all the way back to Silver Falls.
Climbing onto the saddle, she grabbed both horses' reins and got them moving again, praying they would make it back in time.
She pushed the horses hard, turning her head every other breath to make sure Ben was still secure. Several times she had to stop to tighten the ropes and check to see if he was still breathing. Blood leaked from the wound. She was not sure how he was even alive at this point. The bullet had torn his chest open so close to his heart, it was a wonder he had survived this long.
Thoughts of what she would do if he died plagued her for miles. She had so little joy in her life and tasting it, even for a few days…it would be a lonely existence to keep on going without it.
The day wore on, the sun sinking behind the trees and she kept them moving into the night. She was afraid to stop, afraid if she did, Ben would not survive.
He woke when the moon was high in the sky. The relief she felt seeing him stir was short lived when she got the horses stopped and the rope off of him. His face was void of color when he sat up. He was sickly pale, and her heart raced as she looked at him.
They made camp but she barely slept, too afraid if she did, Ben would die without her knowing. She forced him back onto his horse as the sun came up, making him lay across Cash’s neck again. She tied him down while he protested, but he was too weak to give her much of a fight.
When the river changed direction, as Ben said it would, she steered them into the trees and set out in a straight path. Dark shadows filled the forest long hours later and her body was on the verge of collapse when she saw smoke swirling into the air through the trees. They cleared the forest, the ranch that sat on the outskirts of town coming into view. She tried to get the horses moving faster, but they were as worn out as she was. Luckily, it did not take long for someone to see them.
She had seen the girl who lived here once or twice in town. She was not sure of her age, but guessed she was eleven or twelve. The moment she saw them, she turned and ran, yelling something she could not make out. A man stepped out of the barn a moment later.
It took her only a moment to recognize him. Greyson Ford was a man who kept to himself, much like Walter did. She had made the mistake of looking his way once and smiling when he tipped his hat at her. Walter made sure she never did it again. To this day, she had never said a single word to the man.
His eyes widened when he saw them. He jumped onto the back of a horse that stood tethered to a hitching post by the barn and said something to the girl before he hurried their way. When he reached them, the concern on his face made her eyes tear up.
“Can you help him, please?”
Greyson met her gaze before reaching down to lay his fingers against Ben’s neck. She had reached to do the same multiple times but never made contact with his skin. She was afraid of what she would find if she did, and hoped Greyson found the pulse she prayed was still there.
“He’s breathing.”
What breath she had left in a whoosh, her body deflating with it. Her shoulders sagged, and her vision turned blurry. She swayed in the saddle and saw the girl coming toward them a moment later, leading a draft horse hitched to a wagon behind her.
The next couple of minutes were nothing but a blur. Greyson untied Ben and put him in the wagon, laying him out with care, before turning to her. She let him lift her from the horse, her body too weak to do much more than flail about as he helped her into the wagon beside Ben.
She blinked into the twilight, so bone weary it felt as if she had been the one shot. Greyson touched her shoulder and said, “Everything will be alright.” His words eased some of her fears, and as they started for the house, she stared at Ben and willed him to live.
His tongue was stuck to the roof of his mouth.
Ben smacked his lips a few times before cracking an eye open. Wherever he was, it was dark. He didn’t hear a sound but knew he was inside.
Something firm supported him. Moving his fingers, he felt sheets and heard the crunch of hay in the mattress when he gripped it before closing his eyes again and sleeping.
He was in and out until the sun came up. When he could focus his eyes, he saw a girl staring down at him, her braided pigtails swinging when she turned her head and yelled, “He’s awake!”
Ben winced at the shrill sound. The girl turned to look back down at him and he barely managed to say, “Water,” his throat was so parched.
She jumped into action, running from the room only to come back a few minutes later, sloshing water over the sides of the glass she carried with two hands. She helped support his head when she placed the rim of the cup to his lips.
The water was cold and the sensation of it wetting his dry mouth felt odd. He couldn’t ever remember being so thirsty and gulped down the entire glass and asked for another when someone stepped into the room. He recognized him immediately.
“How you feeling?” Greyson Ford gave him a concerned look as he stopped by the foot of the bed. “I gotta say, you looked much better the last time I saw you.”
Ben glanced around the room, then down at his chest. The pain was still there, but not nearly as intense as it had been. Proper bandages circled his torso. “Alive.” He lowered his head and sighed. “I wasn’t sure I would be once we started for Silver Falls.”
He barely remembered the journey. He’d been in and out of consciousness the entire way. He recalled Morning Dove forcing water into his mouth, but he’d choked on most of it. Everything else was a blur.
“Well, it's a miracle you are.” Greyson shifted and crossed his arms over his chest. “How you are is a mystery. Doc Tibbens said you should have bled out on the way here but Morning Dove said she forbid you to die and for once you were listening.”
He grinned and looked toward the door. “Where is she?”
“Next room over. She didn’t look much better than you did when she rode into the field.”
