River on Fire (River's End #5)

by Leanne Davis

  But no such luck. It was a man. And none other than Jack Rydell who answered the phone. She called the main ranch number, the one they formerly used for the resort, which burned down in the fire’s path, and now wasn’t open.

  “Jack?” she gasped out before lifting the phone away as an excruciation pain managed to steal her breath and voice. She cried out loud in a heartrending wail.

  “Hello? Hello? Who is this calling? What’s going on?”

  “It’s J-Jocelyn…” Another one. “P-p-please…h-h-h…elp me,” she squeaked out before an overwhelming contraction compelled her to grab her belly again. She dropped the phone and curled up in agonizing fear. Oh, God. Was she dying? Was something bleeding out inside her? There had to be reasonable explanation for her to feel so bad. Why couldn’t she seem to gain control? Why did she have to writhe on the floor in pain all alone? Far from any help or support and no clue of what she should be doing.

  Real terror started to consume her. Women did still die during childbirth. Sometimes, freak things happened and the women simply died. She was all alone. She had to be in labor, or at least she thought she was and nobody else could know. There was no one to help her. There never had been really, which was cool to Jocelyn. She took care of herself. Always had. Always could, or so she once believed.

  Until this… happened.

  The terror she felt now, at this moment, was exponentially worse than the moment she learned she was pregnant. Unplanned of course. Unwanted too, so she walked around in a daze for several weeks. What would she do about the baby?

  “Ben…!”

  Screaming his name from her lips, she didn’t know if she were enunciating it out of her present need, or want, or longing, or fear. Perhaps it was hatred and repulsion. Maybe she would seek revenge for what he’d done to her and left her to deal with alone. Alone. Squirming in pain like an injured animal left to die on this dirty, dusty floor. How long did she have to wait before anyone found her? How much longer did she have to endure this cruel anguish?

  The fear of losing her baby and dying, then lying there for days or weeks, made her turn to her side as she clutched her swollen belly. Oh, God! She shouldn’t have stayed at the cabin. No. Big mistake.

  But then… where else could she go?

  Closing her eyes, the acuteness of the pain relaxed into a dull throb. She fell exhausted on her back. Lying there with her knees up as far as her bulk would allow, hot tears streamed from her eyes, falling onto the floor below her. She was too exhausted and too famished to even care what became of her now. She hoped she could just drift off and succumb to her exhaustion, letting it take her away.

  Did she sleep? She wasn’t sure. She seemed to be in and out of consciousness, or so she thought.

  What was that?

  A noise. A vehicle. She jerked and tried to sit up but the pain attacked her again.

  Yes. It was a car engine. Stopping, and shutting off. And she even heard a door slamming.

  Footsteps and then loud banging on the front door. Thankfully, a voice yelling out with firm authority and concern, “Jocelyn? What the hell is going on in there?”

  Jack.

  She closed her eyes. Squeezing her eyelids together harder, she thought, Oh God, Jack came.

  “Jack…” she called out. Her voice was weak, and her chapped lips cracked and bled as she opened them to call him.

  Silence; then the door jingled, but it was locked. Shit. She shouldn’t have locked it. But… no. Jack smashed the front door open. If she could have mustered the energy, she would have, no doubt, cheered him on.

  But she wasn’t okay.

  Jack was there. He stopped dead for a moment in the doorway when he spotted her. Then… he was instantly on his knees beside her, his hands kindly supporting her back. “Jocelyn. Oh, God… you’re not all right. Oh, God.”

  Help. Someone was finally there at last. Something inside her released. She wouldn’t die alone. That thought gave her the strength to hold on. She wasn’t alone anymore. She didn’t realize how much his being there meant to her.

  But then…

  “Damn it, girl. You’re having a baby. Why didn’t you tell us?” Jack was rushing all around. First, he was trying his cell phone. She was too tired to tell him it wouldn’t work. Then he was on her land line, calling for help. Screaming into the receiver, he was ordering about whomever was on the other end. His voice was filled with fear and panic. She understood. She felt that way too.

  She remembered how Jack was always so kind to her. Ever since she was just a kid, he’d been generous to her. He gave her a job and riding lessons for nothing. And let her hang out at the ranch as often as she showed up. He didn’t know why she liked to, but he didn’t care. He also didn’t know it was in order for her to avoid Cutter Johnson. But he let her stay there all the same.

  His hands gently touched her cheek and her forehead. Was he feeling for fever? Maybe. Then he clutched her shoulders in a kind of hug. “You’ll be okay, honey. We’ll… we’ll take care of you. I’m sorry to warn you, but I think I’m going to have to get real personal with you and real fast. Erin’s on her way. But I’m not sure that will help. I’m not sure there’s enough time. Allison… she’s on the line. She’s done this before. She’s gonna talk us through this. Okay? You’ll be okay.”

  She could have sworn he gulped when she suddenly grabbed his hand in hers and squeezed it hard as the unparalleled pain shot through her again. She squeezed his hand until his bones nearly fractured. Moaning and groaning, bullets of sweat broke out all over her skin and streams of tears rolled down her cheeks as she gritted her teeth. She was crying out like an animal, making strange grunts through her mouth.

  Vaguely somewhere in her mind far away, she heard Jack talking on the phone. His gentle hands touched her again, but were hesitant. She could almost feel his anxiety as he started to help her out of the sweats, which were the only pants that still fit her. “I’m sorry, Jocelyn, but I need to help you right now.”

  She nodded, closing her eyes, uncaring what Jack saw. Clinging to his voice and his presence, all modesty fell to the wayside. She wasn’t alone. She wasn’t alone. She wasn’t alone.

  Then it happened. And so fast, she couldn’t prepare herself for it.

  “Oh, motherfucker,” Jack muttered softly once he realized what was happening. Then his voice grew louder, and more panicked as he jumped back and screamed into the phone, “Oh, shit. Allison. I can see the baby’s head.”

  She reached towards him, silently pleading him not to abandon her then. But he wouldn’t have. He came right back and turned her over onto her back, saying gently now, “I’ll be right back. Gotta get a towel and some water… just don’t move.”

  She might have considered smiling her appreciation in response if the situation weren’t so lethal in her mind.

  When she felt the cool water on her forehead, she opened her eyes. His compassionate eyes stared down at her as he said, “Okay, Jocelyn we’re going to do this and do it right. Nothing I can’t handle. I’ve delivered dozens of foals before. How different could it be?”

  Finally, a tight smile tugged at her mouth. He nodded and she slowly nodded her agreement.

  She was miserable. The pain didn’t relent and it didn’t get any easier. But her fear subsided, allowing her to find a new level of pain tolerance. The energy she thought was long depleted and buried suddenly resurged through her. Jack helped by talking to her and guiding her. He was her private nurse, doctor, mother and coach.

  Halfway through the ordeal, the front door burst open and Erin entered. Looking every bit as harried and wild as Jack, she pressed her lips together and went right to work assisting them, and taking over the more intimate details. Jack had already disconnected Allison and called 911, who forwarded his call to a doctor. And an ambulance was on the way. There was an ambulance coming for her.

  She might not die after all.

  But no one arrived in time.

  She gave birth on the floor of the sh
ack.

  It all ceased to matter. Every single tear, scream, pain, and the mess of the experience all faded and dissolved when Jocelyn heard her baby cry. The healthy newborn cry of her baby. Erin held the baby in her hands and tears streamed down both their faces as they stared in wonder at the miracle. This tiny creature that seemed to magically emerge from her body, never mind how it nearly ripped her in half.

  “It’s a baby girl. You have a daughter. You did it! You did it, Jocelyn. She’s a perfect baby girl.”

  There was a rather disturbing, ugly goo all over the baby. Blood and a strange white substance that Jocelyn didn’t recognize covered her daughter. Something her body must have created. Flopping back, she was exhausted but grateful as she smiled up at the ceiling. She floated mentally out of the shack and the sad circumstances of her life, so lost in the magic and wonder of her daughter’s birth. She was no longer in the tiny cabin, but somewhere else. Somewhere beautiful. Somewhere special. She was beyond all those things that bothered her before, and all because she’d had this baby.

  Erin came over to her, clasping her hand and pulling her hair back from her sweaty face. “You’re okay, honey. You’re okay. Help just arrived.”

  Chaos ensued. The headlights and warning lights of the ambulance made weird twirling reflections on the interior of the room. People she did not even know knelt beside her, finishing what Jack and Erin started. They put an IV in her hand and attended to her body. After wiping her baby clean, they placed her on Jocelyn’s chest.

  Minutes went by as the professionals treated their patient proficiently. It was so calming to watch them. She might not die from childbirth. She actually believed it now as they gave her fluids and medicine while checking the vital signs of her baby. Even her bruised and battered vagina received proper attention.

  Then everything was calmer. She lay on the gurney. Ready to be taken to the hospital. The Rydells were right there with her, and Erin kept hold of her hand while comforting her like a mother would. Jocelyn didn’t know, since she didn’t remember too much about her mother. Erin was too young to be that for her. They were maybe only a decade apart in ages, but right now, she felt like curling up against Erin’s chest. She thought she might find the help, affection, and understanding she’d been denied for her entire life. Which again, was cool. She wasn’t a touchy-feely girl who needed shit like that normally. But… maybe right now, she did. She hated to admit she wanted that. So much fear and shock for the day left her dazed and unsure of what happened to her. She shook off her perceived need for parental caring. She knew it was not in the cards for her.

  Until… until she looked into Jack’s eyes.

  He was staring at the newly cleaned baby she held. All wrapped up, now it seemed too civilized compared to the last hour… and all the others before that. All that primal, dirty, blood and guts was the epitome of life and all it entailed. Not sweet-smelling blankets and a rosy-hued baby.

  Then Jack lifted his stunned eyes to hers and she met his gaze. Her eyes grew big and fearful. Somehow… he knew. How? Her tired brain could not figure out how he knew. How did he guess?

  “She looks just like him.” Jack seemed crestfallen. He rubbed a hand over his face. “Ah… shit. The night of the fire… he… This is what Ben was running from. Now I see what he’s dealing with…”

  Erin glanced up at Jack’s odd rambling. “What?”

  Jack looked at Jocelyn and she bit her lip, nodding slowly. Jack’s head kept shaking. “She looks just like him. Just exactly like Ben when he was born.”

  “Who?” Erin inquired.

  “Ben.” His voice sounded raw, scraped of all emotions. “Did I just deliver my own granddaughter, Jocelyn?”

  The words Jack spoke stabbed her heart. She finally nodded in the affirmative as she tried to explain, “Yes. But please… please, don’t take her from me…please…”

  As she was being wheeled out to the waiting vehicle, she didn’t hear their answer. She was crying, and clutching the baby she never wanted but would never, ever, think of giving up now. She tightened her arms around her baby. Her baby. She’d die before she’d let the rich and powerful Rydell clan take her baby away from her. Ben be damned. This baby was hers. Forever.

  She kissed her daughter’s head. “I love you. I won’t let them take you from me. Never.”

  Her quiet baby’s eyes stared up at her in rapt wonder, and she believed right down to her toes and in the depths of her heart, that for the first time, someone she loved finally loved her back.

  Keep reading River's Lost.

  My Other Titles:

  The Sister Series is about the emotional scars and battles that are often hidden in people.

  Rape. Drugs. Abuse. Violence. Pain. Betrayal.

  And how they can be overcome.

  Love. Joy. Family. Forgiveness. Faith. Hope. Redemption.

  The Sister Series available to date:

  The Other Sister

  The Years Between

  The Good Sister

  The Best Friend

  The Wrong Sister

  The Years After

  The Broken Sister

  The Perfect Sister

  Daughters is a spin-off of The Sister Series about Jessie’s (The Other Sister) daughters.

  Christina

  Natalie

  The Rydell River Ranch is a large horse training, boarding and breeding operation, owned and operated by four brothers who are left in charge of their century-old legacy in the small, rural town of River’s End.

  River's End

  River's Escape

  River's Return

  River Road

  River on Fire

  River's Lost

  Share in the fall, rise and eventual fulfillment of the rock band Zenith’s destiny…

  Zenith Falling

  Zenith Rising

  Zenith Fulfilled

  The characters are all connected to Seaclusion, Washington a fictional town set along the Pacific Ocean.

  Poison

  Notorious

  Secrets

  Seclusion

  My standalone novel:

  Jason Malone has spent his life being denied by his family. His father, the respected mayor of his hometown, has all but ignored his existence, while his drug-addicted mother has always brought him more harm than good. After being unjustly imprisoned for crimes that involved his absentee family, he is finally starting to get his life back together again.

  Then, one day, his estranged brother's fiancée walks into his life and changes everything.

  Christine Andrews is the dutiful daughter of a rich and powerful family, engaged to Trent Gallagher, her father's right hand man, and poised to join her father and Trent in running the empire her father has built. When Christine discovers the existence of Jason Malone, she suddenly begins to doubt everything around her, including her fiancé.

  Christine is soon caught in a power struggle between the two brothers, but she realizes there is far more at stake than just her heart, when everything is altered forever one night.

  About the Author

  I live in the rainy area of Western, Washington, and spend as much time as I can getting away from the rain by traveling to destinations all across the state where my family and I do tons of camping, boating, fishing, and horseback riding. Many of the locations where we camp become the basis for my books. Most of my settings are fictional but based on real places.

  I earned my business degree from Western Washington University. I worked for several years in the construction management field before turning to writing and being at home with my kids.

  I love to hear from readers. Please contact me at: dvsleanne@aol.com.

  Or through one of my sites:

  Website

  Facebook Author Page

  Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed River on Fire.

 

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