Robbie couldn’t hear the yelling, but a few men went into the trees around the caves and came back a few moments later with wood.
Devlyn had found his campsite.
Robbie nudged Revenge back into the trees, anxiety holding his muscles tight. Could he get to her in time, if he went the back way? They picked their way further downstream, past the caverns and closer to the drop off into Lacey Valley where the two rivers were little more than three feet at the deepest and significantly wider.
Revenge didn’t balk at entering water. He crossed the rivers easily. Revenge was so tall Robbie only got splashed by the fresh mountain snow runoff. On the far river bank, Revenge shook himself a little, but answered Robbie’s prodding and moved forward.
The caverns had multiple openings. Amelia and Caracus’s gang had reached only the beginning of the caves. Where Amelia had entered was the “front door” into a long, interwoven tunnel system mainly untouched by man.
Indian legend claimed that a large vein of silver and sapphires lined the walls of the inner tunnels, enough to give the water its blue color. The Native Americans had never been interested in the metals and precious gemstones, instead they were more invested in the prairies for agriculture and the mountains for the wildlife. For them, the beauty of the waters had been used in worshipping their deity.
But the James clan had only wanted the mining rights – screw the prairie. And the MacAllisters had only wanted to share the land with others – make a living off bringing the history of the Colby area alive with camping and ranching.
A breeze blew from the largest tunnel opening. Robbie shivered, pulling the collar of his duster higher up his neck. If wind blew this far up the mountain, then a storm would be hitting soon – starting down in the Valley first. Amelia’s chances just got cut in half. And you didn’t need to be a gambling man to see that when the odds decreased, the outlook wasn’t good.
Stalactites and stalagmites decorated the damp cavities. Robbie tied Revenge to a column protruding from the ground like the leg of a man. Water dripped into a shallow puddle inches away. Robbie returned to the forest and ripped an armful of foliage from the ground – a mix of grass and leaves, whatever he could find. Beside the water, he dropped the greens. “Sorry it’s nothing fancy, boy. I don’t know how long I’ll be.” He rubbed the bridge of the horse’s nose and then patted his back haunch. He unhooked his rope from the saddle side and looped it across his chest and over his damaged shoulder.
He didn’t have much time to disappear into the dark, the cold, the damp. Step by step he moved further into the tunnels with confidence. More than four years since he’d been in them, but it seemed like just that morning. Growing up in the labyrinthine caves had been a game. Ronan, Amelia, Slate, and Robbie. Tag, Hide-and-Seek, House, all kinds of games in the cool caverns during hot summer days. Even the underground river surfaced for a stretch, calm and lazy as it stretched across a large expanse of the subterranean area. Less than two feet deep, they’d played in its depths for hours on end, one of them always equipped with a lantern to keep the darkness at bay.
Robbie ran a finger along the moist wall as he went. Four shades darker than black, the interior of the cave took away sight completely. His other senses took over as drips of water and the scrape of his boots echoed. A clean, almost sweet scent filled his nose as a sheen of moisture dotted his skin and certainly his clothing.
Deeper. Deeper. And deeper still.
After a handful of turns and long stretches of hunkering over before being able to stand straight up again, Robbie reached the first of many forks that would lead either out of the caves or into the deepest darkest oubliette-style cells. He followed the second one, then another fork and he took the third option, then again, and after five forks, he finally reached the split which would take him to a large opening or to a small cubby-like space where he hoped Amelia had gone to hide.
The rise and fall of voices caught Robbie off-guard. He listened for a moment.
Easily identified, Devlyn Caracus’s voice carried into the depths around Robbie. With how the syllables ebbed and flowed, he’d still be at the entrance and not actually inside the caves themselves. “After we get the girl, we’ll wait here for MacAllister. I guarantee the loser will come back for her. By then, she should be spoiled goods.”
Robbie gritted his teeth at the raunchy laughter from the men resounding through the caverns. If the rumors circulating about the Caracus gang had even ten-percent of truth, all of the men with Devlyn would be the ones to “spoil” Amelia, most likely leaving her worse off than dead.
Before he ran into the group shooting at anything breathing, he ducked into the small cubby which was smaller at the external opening than where he climbed in – but not by much. He had to walk in bent over at the waist.
The littler tunnel wasn’t more than twenty feet long with two main curves that separated it into little rooms. He knelt in the first one he came to, listening for anything to tell him he’d chosen correctly.
Shallow breathing and a small moan reached him, filling him with relief that he’d guessed right and had found her and worry because Amelia didn’t usually express pain or weakness – at least not around him.
Her dip in the river and nail-biting scramble over the dirt and mud hadn’t erased her natural scent. In the lightening dark, he could almost taste her honey-sweetness on the air. He crawled the next few feet around the curve where the light broke through the dark. In the seconds it took for his eyes to adjust, Robbie almost crawled over Amelia as she huddled against the chilly wall.
Resting on her side, half in the fetal position, Amelia didn’t budge at his arrival.
Robbie wrapped an arm around her. Her icy skin increased his alarm. Hypothermia was nothing to play with. She didn’t do more than offer a small whimper at his sudden appearance.
He whispered directly into her ear. “Shhh. It’s me. Come on, let’s get you out of here.” Robbie couldn’t carry her, not with his shoulder as bad as it was combined with the abuse his body and apparently Slate’s had endured the last few days. She needed to get her body moving anyway. “Amelia, honey, you need to help me. I can’t carry you in here. The ceiling is too low, remember?”
Her nod came slow. She moved like frozen peanut butter.
Robbie relented to his sympathy. He was more worried for her than he wanted to admit. “Hold on.” He stopped her with a hand to her shoulder. Removing the looped rope and then his leather coat, he set them to the side. “Don’t be scared, Ames, I’m going to take your outer clothing off, okay? Just work with me.” He pulled her shirt over her head, moving her arms up and down. He put the cloth on the ground and laid her softly on it, the actions reminding him of their last night together – before his absence – right there, in that cave.
She didn’t resist. He tugged her wet pants from her hips and down to her ankles. Crap, he’d forgotten about her shoes and socks and couldn’t get her pants off over them. Removing those, he then finished pulling off the jeans. She didn’t make a sound.
Rubbing his hands up and down her body in brisk patterns, Robbie worked on sparking some warmth. “Don’t go to sleep, girl. You’re almost there. Come on.” He reached her shoulders, clumsily pulling her up into a sitting position as he did so. He continued whispering. “Amelia, I’m putting my coat on you, then I want you to climb on my back, okay?” She didn’t respond, her head lolling to the back and left.
Shit. He draped his leather duster over her shoulders, tucking her arms into the sleeves. His body warmth inside the thick coat would start warming her body up. But how much longer did he have before the men attempted to come deeper into the caves and across Robbie’s escape path?
Robbie did his best to ignore the sweet scent that was distinctly Amelia, her natural perfume had entranced him from the beginning and he’d asked her once where she bought the smell. She’d laughed. If he remembered right, they’d been twelve and eleven.
He turned on his knees, his back facing h
er and reached behind him with his good arm for her wrists. Pulling her onto his back shouldn’t have been so easy and yet so difficult. She should have fought him a little bit, done something, anything. But she limply draped over his back and shoulders as he dropped to all fours. He’d carry her in a crawl until he could get her out of the smaller tunnel.
But as he moved his hands over the scratchy floor, his bad arm folded. He corrected before they both collapsed to the ground. He couldn’t hold her on his back and worry about his arm. He glanced at the rope, acknowledging its presence and its potential but regretting its need all at the same time. He moved into a kneeling position with Amelia still lounging on his back. With small movements, he got the rope around her body and his four times before he tied them securely together. Hopefully, it worked. At the moment, it’d have to.
She hadn’t gained weight, in fact might have been a little bit slimmer. Her cold cheek pressed into the back of his neck. Hopefully she was benefitting from his warmth.
The voices could be heard again at the transition between the small cave and the larger one that would take them to their exit. Robbie limped on all three good-working limbs into the bigger cave then struggled to a standing position. He grabbed the rope and pulled it tighter, yanking her knees up to his waist and gritting his teeth against the pain in his arm.
He could do it. He didn’t have far to go to reach Revenge.
Working in the dark offered a modicum of comfort. Most people didn’t like the underground lack of light. But Robbie found it soothing, away from the cares of the world. If Amelia didn’t have a life-threatening condition, he’d consider talking her into staying the night with him, there in their cave. Pretending that for just a little while, they had never left each other’s arms. He used the imaginings to escape the pain weakening each crawl.
The voices grew louder. “I don’t know why Caracus makes me do everything. I hate caves.”
“Shut up, Jack. You’re the reason we’re in this shithole. Let’s get the girl so we can go back to the fire.” The second man’s irritation with Jack brought a smile to Robbie’s face. Even Jack’s colleagues didn’t like him. Typical.
Light bounced off the walls, not quite reaching Robbie’s position, but close enough to startle him. Of course they had flashlights. A bright circle flashed his way and then turned another direction. He stepped back, deeper in the dark.
If he didn’t get going, they’d find him and Amelia for sure. She had to be closer to mortal danger than he could guess. Even with real danger imminent, he couldn’t think the word dead, at least not pertaining to Amelia.
~~~
Getting back to Revenge took a little longer than when Robbie had walked inside.
The horse offered a slight snort when he saw his owner, looking mildly bored.
Robbie dropped to his knees, relieved that they’d made it. He untied the rope and pulled Amelia to the ground in front of him. Patting Amelia’s face, first one cheek then the other, he said. “Hey, Amelia. I need you to wake up. Come on.”
Her eyelids fluttered and she moved back and forth on his arm where he’d rested her head.
“Yes, wake up. I need you to climb on my horse. Amelia.” He shook her, and she finally struggled against his hold. “That’s good. Come on, let’s get on the horse so you can see Mac.” And the child’s name got her. She blinked her eyes, slow, but opened them after a second to focus on him. He smoothed stray strands of hair from her cheek. “That’s right. Come on. Let’s go see our son.”
Amelia braced herself on Robbie’s shoulder, pushing up to a wobbly stance. He’d take it. All he needed was for her to get on the horse. Robbie climbed on the saddle, then held his good arm down to her. “Take my arm and step on my boot. You don’t have shoes, so it’s the softer choice. You can do it.”
She followed his direction, her grip on his shoulder brief and slight. But after a couple tries, she was able to sit in front of him. She muttered words that only partially made sense. “Lay on you. Tired.”
Nudging Revenge forward, Robbie untied the reins. “You absolutely can lay on me. I’m warmer than you are.” Before pushing Revenge from the cave, Robbie tucked the ends of his coat around Amelia, her exposed lower legs and feet wouldn’t benefit from the warmth, but the most important thing at the moment was Amelia’s core. He had to keep her from going further into hypothermic shock. He had to get her home. “Hang on, honey. We’re going to do this as fast as I can. And it won’t be comfortable.”
And they struck out, heading back across the shallow forks of the river, careful to stay in the sunlight where possible.
Amelia’s head leaned against his collarbone as she fit right against his chest and between his legs. Like she’d never left.
The past few years melted away. Oh, man, how he’d missed her. Everything in him ached for her. What if she died? He’d never get the chance to tell her how much he loved her, how much he didn’t care that she’d sent him away so long ago, or hid their child from him. He didn’t care. He loved her and he didn’t want to be away from her any longer.
But how could he do that, if she died?
~~~
Robbie stopped to adjust her legs. Amelia had passed out again while they’d crossed the second small waterway. Her sudden heaviness against his bad arm had almost toppled them both to the ground. He straightened both their bodies on the saddle and returned to using his legs to guide Revenge.
In the tree line across the river, he rolled his shoulders. She didn’t weigh much, hadn’t seemed to at first either. But for a man whose shoulder and other injuries sapped his strength, she might as well have gained a ton in the last forty-five minutes. He grimaced at the thought of saying that out loud. She’d freak. She’d never been comfortable with her weight, even as slight as she was. He knew that it came from being constantly judged by the townspeople – they didn’t have a fondness for the James family. Why would they when Ronan owned half their homes and worked on buying the other half?
The quiet of the woods broke when a shout carried over the rushing water. “Jack, you find anything yet?”
Robbie backed Revenge into the shadows, careful not to move fast. He’d been lulled by the time since retrieving Amelia into thinking they’d made it.
Three men walked in a crooked line through the thinner trees and brush bordering the base of the mountain. Too bad for them, he’d already found what they were looking for.
Devlyn had sent out search parties. How long would he search for Amelia, before he sought out Robbie again?
Quietly, Robbie turned Revenge back into the woods, far enough he could push him forward into making their own trail to the prairie. Leaning back as they traveled at a slight downhill grade, Robbie crossed his bad arm around Amelia’s waist. It wasn’t much, but it was more than nothing.
He had to go faster and faster until they were flying over the ground, but it took everything in him to keep them both on the horse.
His chin stabilized her head from falling forward or moving to the sides too much. He held her forearm in the hand on his bad arm, touching her clammy skin and monitoring her slow pulse. Her head tilted and then slammed back to land against his jaw. Her chilly flesh worried him.
Why did he have to have an injury? Why couldn’t he be whole? With how worried he was, where the constant contact should’ve been distracting and filled with desire, all he could do was prod his horse faster and then urge him to slow down. His Amelia… his girl. Come on, they had to make it. He couldn’t imagine anything without her.
Movement up ahead caught his eye. He double-toe-tapped Revenge’s shoulders, bringing them to a slow stop. He peered into the deepening afternoon shadows of the eastern facing hill, trying to make out – threat or not.
A loud whisper reached him from about twenty feet away. “You lucky bastard. If I hadn’t recognized that damn hat of yours, you’d be dead right now.” Ronan and his horse stepped into view. “You found her? What about Caracus? You were gone a helluva long time?
Is she okay? Why is she half-naked?”
“Shit, Ronan. I forgot all about you guys.” He reached up and wiped his brow and then repositioned himself on the stirrups of his saddle, all the while careful not to jostle Amelia loose. “They’re still back there, looking in the caverns and around in the woods. They crossed the river and she fell in. She’s pretty chilled, Ronan. I need to get her to the house.” Revenge shuffled to the side, turning where he stood.
Ronan narrowed his eyes, studying his sister and most likely sizing up the situation. He jerked his head toward the rivers. “You say they’re still there?”
“All of them. They seem pretty unprepared for a search party or any type of rescue.” Robbie prodded Revenge downward again, slowly, so he could continue the conversation, but he needed to keep going. Amelia didn’t have a lot of time. His worry cut off his normal breathing and his diaphragm pushed up on his heart.
Ronan gave a short soft double-whistle and men appeared in the trees further than Robbie could see. “We’ve been waiting for the scout to return with word.” Ronan contemplated Robbie and Amelia, a tightness to his jaw. “Do you need me to take her? You look like you’re both going to fall off that damn horse.”
The offer might be better than Robbie taking her. His only concern was getting her home fast and he wasn’t doing the job justice. “If you don’t think you need to be here, then yeah, I would love help. But if not, I need to go.” And the simple acquiesce to his fallibilities shook his pride like a damn nine-point-nine earthquake. The act of admitting to Ronan he was less than him stung more than Robbie would ever admit.
Robbie endured another round of inspection from Ronan who tilted his hat at Robbie and said. “I think you got this. Look, we’re going to get in there and see what we can do. You get her home. Now. I’ll swing by and pick her up after I’m done here.” He nodded his head and tucked his hat firmly on his head.
What the hell? “Wait, Ronan, you’re not taking her anywhere.” Robbie welcomed the indignation as it welled within him.
Secrets and Lace (Lonely Lace #2) Page 9