Bringing up the blankets to cover them both, Patience snuggled against him. Desire shot through Jim like lightning. He was too tired, though, and he couldn’t betray the trust Patience had placed in him. It didn’t take longer than two minutes of him holding her under the warm covers before her even breathing told him she was asleep.
He lay there another two or three minutes—at least that’s what it felt like—when his alarm went off. He quickly turned the watch off and stared at it. It couldn’t be four o’clock. He’d lain down with Patience at eight-thirty.
He realized he felt better. Not back to his usual strength, but better. He moved from Patience with reluctance. Her warmth had reassured him as much as his had her. The thought of crawling into bed with Patience for the rest of his life seemed as necessary as taking his next breath.
When they got home and had Tommy safe, they had a lot to talk about.
He climbed down the ladder and found Tommy still sleeping, looking as if he hadn’t moved all night. After putting on his boots, Jim grabbed his coat and some feed for the horses. They got fed first.
The two horses were huddled together under the shed roof that extended over the corral. The smell of feed roused them. “Eat up, guys. You’ve got another long day before we get home.”
He watched for a minute to be sure they were okay. Grabbing a nearby log, he broke the ice on the water trough so they could drink. Then he went back inside. Adding a couple of logs to the stove, with its glowing coals, upped the temperature level. They might as well start out warm.
Instant oatmeal didn’t take long to fix. When he had three bowls ready and powdered milk in three glasses, he called to Patience.
“Patience! Breakfast is ready. You’ve got two minutes!”
Then he crossed to Tommy. “Little guy, it’s time to get up and eat breakfast. Come on. I’ll carry you to the bathroom, but you’ve got to hurry. It’s your mom’s turn next.”
It took about ten minutes, but he soon had them eating their breakfast. He wished he’d found more food to take with them. All he had that would be easy to eat on the trail was beef jerky. Definitely an acquired taste, he admitted, hoping Patience and Tommy would eat it.
He poured Patience a cup of coffee to finish off breakfast.
“I want some, too!” Tommy cried, pushing his cup forward.
“Sure, Tommy.”
Patience looked alarmed, but Jim poured several drops of coffee into the boy’s milk, enough to give it a tan. “Try that, Tommy.”
The little boy beamed at Jim. “I’m a big boy.”
“Yes, you are. I know big boys who wouldn’t have done as well as you.”
The little boy drank his “coffee” with pride—and tried to hide his distaste for it.
“Okay, Tommy, one last visit to the bathroom and then we have to go.”
When Tommy had left the table, Patience smiled at Jim. “Thank you for understanding. It made him feel so proud.”
“He’s done well, Patience.”
“And…and thank you for comforting me last night. I shouldn’t have fallen apart.” She kept her gaze down.
Jim chuckled. “You comforted me, as well.”
She turned bright red. “I’m glad.”
“Take your turn with the facilities after Tommy. Then we’ll be on our way.”
“But it’s still dark out there.”
“We’ve got about an hour’s ride before we reach the trail down. I’m timing it so we’ll be there at sunrise.”
Tommy came out and she disappeared into the bath. Jim, meanwhile, helped Tommy with his boots and coat. “Are you going to ride with your mommy today?” he asked.
Patience came out to answer that question. “Yes. He’ll ride with me. He’ll probably sleep a little more.”
She slid into her big coat and pulled a wool cap over her blond hair, then put on her gloves. “I’m ready.”
He took her outside, opened the corral and helped her mount her horse, then picked up Tommy and placed him in front of her. “Do you see where the trail starts off?” He pointed to the slight break in the trees to the east.
“Yes. Jim, don’t make me go on without you.”
He sighed. “Patience, I just want to backtrack a little bit to—”
“That will mess up all you’ve done to cover our trail. Come with us, please?” Her gray eyes pleaded with him.
After a moment he gave in. “Okay, I’ll come with you. But if I tell you to go on without me, next time you have to go. I’ve put a .22 rifle on your saddle so you’ll be able to protect yourself if something happens to me.”
“Okay,” she said.
Jim wasn’t sure he trusted her to do as he asked. Now she knew how weak he was when it came to denying her.
He mounted Jasper and led the way to the trail. At first sight he’d put out the fire in the stove before he left the cabin, and there was no obvious sign that they’d been there.
His spirits were higher today. They were going to make it, he was sure. He’d done what he set out to do—rescue Patience and Tommy. And he’d made his peace with Patience, which was more than he’d hoped for.
And he intended to grow closer to her once they were home. He’d been an idiot to stay away from her for the past three years. Foolish pride had cost him a lot.
THE SNOW WAS crusty in places, which made it hard going that first hour. And because it was dark, Jim didn’t want to push Patience and Tommy too hard.
In fact, the time just before dawn had a kind of dreamlike quality that lulled him into ignoring any noises. No one could’ve caught up with them that quickly.
A shot rang out.
“Ride on, Patience,” he shouted as he pulled his rifle from his saddle and leaped to the ground, reins still in his hand. He found the nearest tree and began to search the forest behind him.
Shadowy movement drew a couple of shots from him. Then he waited to see what they would do next. He counted three men. That would be the general and his two lieutenants, he thought.
Jim was glad. He could hate those men—but not the innocents he’d spent a day training.
He risked a quick look behind him, expecting to see Patience riding quickly down the trail. She would reach the downward path soon and be out of range. Hopefully he could hold these three up until she was safe.
But he saw nothing. In fact, there were no tracks much farther down the trail from where he’d stopped. Patience couldn’t have been hit by that bullet, could she? He would’ve noticed if she’d been shot. His heart almost stopped beating at that thought. He wanted to call out, to hear a satisfactory answer, but to do so would put her in danger.
Suddenly there was more gunfire. He swung around to face his attackers. He returned fire and knew he’d hit one of them. There was a scream and a body fell on to the snow from behind one of the trees.
That meant he only had two to deal with. The general wasn’t the one who’d taken the bullet. If he had, his men would have turned back. They had no dispute with Jim or Patience. They hadn’t wanted the boy in the camp in the first place.
More shots were fired, but Jim realized they were random, as if covering someone’s tracks. He swung around in time to face his attacker. One of the lieutenants had circled behind him and was lining up his shot. Jim tried to fire his rifle, but he heard a shot, and then another, and the man fell facedown in the snow.
Pain seared his right shoulder, confusing him. He thought maybe he’d gotten off a shot in spite of himself, but he didn’t think so.
When he saw Patience step out from behind a tree with the .22 he’d given her from the cabin, he realized what had happened. She hadn’t gone on, as he’d ordered. She’d gotten down from her horse to help him fight.
Ducking behind trees, she ran to his side. “Jim, you’re shot!”
He loved hearing the anguish in her voice, feeling her soft hands on his face. More shots snapped him out of that dazed feeling. “Got to…return fire. Let them know we’re still fighting.”
/> Patience put her rifle barrel up against the tree to steady her aim and fired several shots.
Then she turned into a nurse, opening his jacket to look at the gunshot. In the meantime Jim heard the sound of a horse retreating. He caught a glimpse of a man on the horse, riding away from them.
“He’s gone,” Jim said, trying to sit up.
“Lie still. You’re bleeding. Oh, Jim, I’m so sorry! I didn’t want you to get hurt.”
“I know. Look, it’s not bad. I can still move my hand.”
“Hush!” She took off her wool cap and used it as a pad to press on the wound and stem the bleeding. “Now I wish I’d paid more attention in my first-aid class in college.”
“I don’t think they were preparing you for—ouch—gunshot wounds.”
“Probably not, but surely some of it would’ve helped.”
“Where’s Tommy?” Jim asked in alarm, trying to sit up until pain had him slumping again.
“I hid him and told him not to move until I got back.”
“We’ve got to make sure he’s safe.”
“If you promise to lie still, I’ll go get him and bring him here. Then I’ll bandage your shoulder the best I can, and we’ll start down the trail.”
“Okay,” he agreed.
With that she picked up her rifle and hurried in the direction from where she’d come. He was fortunate she hadn’t obeyed him. He’d be dead by now. In moments she was bending over him again, Tommy at her side.
“You okay, little guy?”
“Yes. I took care of the horse.”
“Good boy. You did better than me.”
“Where’s Jasper?” Tommy asked.
“He should be around. I left his reins dragging.” All the horses on the Randall ranch were trained to stay put when their reins were left untied.
Tommy and Patience looked about. “I see him,” Patience said. “If I get him, will you be able to mount with a little help?”
“Of course.” He tried to sound strong and slightly offended at her question.
“Are you hurt?” Tommy asked, reaching over to pat Jim’s shoulder. Unfortunately he patted the wound, which made Jim grimace.
“No, Tommy!” Patience called softly. She brought Jasper to a stop in front of Jim, then helped Jim sit up against a tree. She took her scarf off and put it inside his shirt.
“What are you doing?” he asked.
“I’m bandaging your arm with my scarf.” She wrapped the long scarf around him, binding his arm, so it wouldn’t move and cause him pain.
“Now, I want you to try to mount Jasper.”
Since the wound was in his right shoulder, he could only use his left hand to pull himself awkwardly into the saddle.
“Good for you, Jim. I wasn’t sure what we’d do if you couldn’t get up there. Now, I’m going to put you on, Tommy.” She settled the little boy in her saddle. “You think they all went away, don’t you, Jim?”
“Yeah.” He couldn’t believe how weak he was. He barely had the energy to respond.
She swung up into the saddle behind her son, grasped Jasper’s reins and headed down the path for the switchback trail that would take them to the Randall ranch. “If you feel faint, let me know.”
“Right,” he said, but the word came out slurred. What was happening here? He was supposed to be saving Patience, not the other way around.
Patience gave Jim a sharp look and pulled Jasper up alongside her mount. “Jim?”
“What?”
“Don’t let go. Okay?”
“Yeah,” he said.
It only took fifteen minutes to get to the downward trail. Patience was relieved to have reached it, but it meant that they had to go in single file. She remembered Jim telling her to lead the horses down.
She swung down from the saddle. “Tommy, I’m going to lead the horses. Can you hold on tight to the saddle?”
“Yes, Mommy.” He sounded as if it was no challenge at all.
She tied her horse’s reins to Jim’s saddle horn. She took Jasper’s reins and began the descent, keeping an anxious eye on both the riders. It was slow going. She had to stop after an hour for a breather. She also noticed Jim slumping lower and lower.
“Tommy, we’re going to rest a minute. Do you want down?”
“Yes, Mommy, I need to pee.”
“Yes, of course,” she said with a sigh. They’d come across a wide spot on the trail, so she urged him ahead of the horses where he wouldn’t get stepped on. Then she turned to Jim.
She was worried, but she didn’t want to let him off the horse because she was afraid he wouldn’t be able to get back on.
“Jim? How are you?”
He moaned, nothing more. She opened his saddlebags, looking for anything that would help her. She found a first-aid kit. She pulled her cap off his wound and replaced it with gauze. He was being jolted by the horse’s movement, but it was the only way she had to get him down the trail.
She also found the walkie-talkie. Were they in radio range yet? Could she reach the ranch with it? They still had a long way to go, but it would help to know that someone would be waiting for them.
“I’m done, Mommy,” Tommy announced.
She put her son back into the saddle and gave him a package of beef jerky, showing him how to take out one piece at a time.
“It’s hard to bite,” Tommy complained.
“That’s why it’s named jerky. You have to jerk on it.” She gave a demonstration and then chewed as if she enjoyed it. Her son successfully followed her example.
She moved back to Jim’s side. “Jim, how are you?”
“Thirsty,” he muttered.
She felt his forehead and realized he was hot with fever. She found painkillers in the first-aid kit and gave him two pills and his canteen. He managed to get that down, which she found encouraging.
Then she tried to rouse someone with the walkie-talkie. “Hello, Randall Ranch? Can anyone hear me? Hello?”
She listened intently, but heard nothing. With a sigh, she put it back in the saddlebag. She’d try again later.
“Hello? Are you there?”
The disembodied voice scared her to death. Then she realized someone was answering her call. She grabbed the walkie-talkie and pressed the button. “Yes, we’re here. We need help. Jim’s been shot and he’s not doing very well.” She waited. Nothing. What was wrong?
She gave up again and moved toward Jasper when the voice came again. “Patience, you have to release the button when you finish talking so you can hear us.”
“Oh, thank you. Did you hear me?” She released the button.
“Yes. Where is Jim shot?” The voice was feminine.
“In the right shoulder. I’ve bandaged it as well as I can, but it’s still bleeding a little.”
“Are you on the switchback trail?”
“Yes.”
“We’ll meet you with the ambulance.”
Patience almost sobbed with relief. “Thank you.”
She put the walkie-talkie back in the saddlebag and started leading the horses down the trail again. They turned a bend and suddenly the entire valley was spread out before them. She was even able to pick out the Randall ranch. It had so many buildings it was like a small town.
It comforted her to know that someone down there was coming to help them. She looked back at Jim just in time to catch him as he slid out of the saddle. He was heavy and she staggered under his weight as she tried to get him back into the saddle.
“Jim! Jim, can you hear me?”
He moaned.
She stopped Jasper from moving. Then she managed to push Jim toward the wall of rock on the other side. She was going to have to be quick, she reminded herself. As he leaned on the rock, she slipped her foot in the stirrup and swung up behind him.
“Mommy, what are you doing?” Tommy asked.
“Trying to keep Jim in the saddle.”
“Want him to ride with me? I’ll share.”
“I think we’d b
etter do it this way. Now all you have to do, sweetie, is hold on.”
She prayed Jasper could hold up under double weight. Some horses bucked when two people got on them. She gave thanks as she realized Jasper was well behaved. With a sigh, she locked her arms around Jim’s broad chest and tried to hold the reins, too. But she realized she was at Jasper’s mercy. Fortunately the horse seemed inclined to head for home.
So was she.
Chapter Six
Several hours of straining to hold up Jim’s weight had numbed Patience’s arms. At one point she heard voices. Thinking she was losing her mind, it was a relief to realize they were coming from the walkie-talkie in the saddlebag. She tried to reach it, but she almost lost Jim, so she gave up that idea.
His family was going to think she was very uncooperative, but she’d apologize later. After she got Jim down the mountain.
Tommy, who had held up remarkably well, had begun complaining again about being tired, even wanting a nap, and being hungry again. There was nothing she could do.
As they got lower, she caught sight of some riders moving toward them, but they were too far away and she couldn’t identify them as friend or foe.
In fact, she was beginning to think everyone was her foe, and she’d never recover from the agonizing ride. When she heard hoofbeats and horses neighing, she thought she was imagining things. When Jasper patiently turned a corner on the trail, she was suddenly confronted with two riders.
Jasper came to a halt and threw his head up. Patience held on for dear life, afraid the horse was going to finally give her trouble.
The first man dismounted and came toward her and she realized it was Toby Randall.
“Oh, Toby, I didn’t recognize you for a minute,” Patience said with a gasp, sagging momentarily, which caused Jim to shift.
Toby hurriedly reached for Jim, giving Patience some assistance.
“I’m sorry. He’s heavy,” Patience said.
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