Jimmy said, “Oh no you don’t. Either we kill him, or we take him back to Kentucky.”
Ryder said, “Go get my horse.”
“What are you gonna do iffen he gits away. We already ruffed him up. I don’t want to start no feud with the Smith Clan.”
“There ain’t no Smith clan. And even if there were, he ain’t gonna git away. Ain’t no way some kid on a bicycle is gonna outrun me on a horse. This won’t be much of a challenge, but we been stuck out here for months without so much as a whiff of any of them damned Kerns. I’m bored.”
Josh could barely conceal his relief. But it was short lived. All they had to do was backtrack and it would lead them straight to Channie. His trail was so obvious, even the misdirection spells wouldn’t stop them. Wisdom had warned him about this very thing. Why hadn’t he listened?
Jimmy said, “I ain’t in the mood to go chasing no damn monkey-on-a-bike all over the damn mountain.”
“So don’t go.”
“Let’s just kill him now and be done with it. I wanna take a nap.”
“Fine. Take a nap. But I’m gonna have me a little fun. I ain’t never chased nobody on a bicycle.”
Josh turned to Ryder and said, “If you’re bored, why not make it more interesting and give me a ten minute lead.”
He grinned but Jimmy said, “Five minutes. That’s all you get.”
Josh swallowed and nodded. He seemed to be doing a lot of that.
Jimmy’s foul breath burned Josh’s nose as he leaned over to untie him. “No funny business. Or I’ll skin you alive then hang your hide out to dry.”
“Got it. No funny business.”
Josh rubbed his sore wrists and stretched his cramped legs then mounted his bike.
Ryder put a hand on Josh’s shoulder and said, “Hold on a sec.” He waited until Jimmy ducked inside the tent then packed another wad of tobacco into the side of his mouth. “Let’s make this interesting. I’ll give you ten minutes plus however long it takes me to saddle up. If you make it to the river before I do, I’ll let you go.”
“Where’s the river?” Josh didn’t trust the tracker to keep his word, but he couldn’t stifle the hope swelling inside his chest.
“It’s at the bottom of the mountain, dumb-ass. Just go back the way you come.”
Josh would have more of a chance to outrun the tracker if he used the mountain bike course he’d already scoped, but that would lead him closer to Channie. It wasn’t worth the risk.
“I’ve already ridden that course. You aren’t the only one that gets bored.” He pointed at the opposite end of the meadow where the trail picked up again. “Let’s go that way.”
Ryder grinned. “I like your gumption, boy. It’s a doggone shame I’m gonna have to kill you.”
“I thought you promised Jimmy he could do it.”
“Jimmy’s got a mean streak in him. I’ll do it myself and make it quick. You won’t feel a thing. Consider it a reward for your bravery.”
Josh settled his helmet on his head and clicked his shoes into the quick-release pedals then tried to mask his terror with sarcasm. “Gee, thanks a lot.”
Ryder turned his head away from Josh to spit then grinned at him and said, “You’re welcome.”
~***~
A chain with a metal sign that read, “Closed, due to erosion,” blocked the trail. Josh ducked under it and took off for the race of his life.
He’d hoped for a steeper angle of descent, but the trail cut across the face of the mountain in a giant zig-zag pattern of switchbacks. The weather had been completely dry since the blizzard almost a month ago, but the north side of the mountain still had dirty patches of snow weeping a constant trickle of water onto the trail. No wonder the course was closed. It resembled a mudslide more than a trail. Josh didn’t know anything about horses, but he didn’t think the black goo sucking at his tires would be nearly as much of a hindrance for a four-legged animal as it was for him.
If he could get far enough ahead of Ryder, maybe he could hide and then try to curse him as he rode past. But the odds of that happening weren’t very good. He hadn’t been able to curse Hunter after trying for days. He doubted he’d be able to figure it out in time to curse Ryder.
It would be safer for Channie if he got as far down the trail as possible and then cast a warning spell. It was a long shot, but it couldn’t be all that different from the distress spell he’d cast the night they nearly froze to death. All he could do was hope that Hunter or Wisdom would get the message and force Channie to leave before the trackers followed his trail back to the shack.
He hadn’t even rounded the first bend when a sound, like someone drumming their fingers on a desk pad, stopped his heart. It was faint, but growing louder. He wasn’t nearly as far down the mountain as he needed to be.
An opening in the trees caught his eye. He jerked the handlebars, bunny-hopped onto a fallen log then plunged into the forest. Everything else faded into background noise as he scanned ahead and picked his line. Thorns snagged his clothing and clawed his skin. The opening that had lured him into the forest, narrowed, funneling him into a ravine. By the time he realized his mistake, it was too late to do anything about it. The bottom of the ravine was full of babyheads and death cookies. The rocks were slippery, but it was better than mud.
Josh cornered around a tree stump and nearly plowed into a bear-sized boulder. He swerved and avoided a head-on collision, but grazed the side of his thigh. That’s going to leave a bruise … If I live long enough to find out.
He’d wanted a steeper descent. He got it. It took every bit of skill he possessed and all his concentration to navigate the rough terrain. Crested Butte had nothing on this widow-maker. Ah, Channie, I’m so sorry. He’d give anything if he could just take back the cruel words he’d spoken this morning. The last thing he’d said to her was … I love you too, but maybe that’s not enough.
A sliver of hope pierced his heavy heart when he realized he didn’t hear the horse anymore. Maybe Ryder had missed Josh’s detour. The ravine leveled off and widened, revealing a smooth slate surface under the scattered rocks. Had the fates or destiny or whatever finally decided to cut him some slack?
Nope.
A distant neigh and the clatter of hooves on loose rocks shot adrenaline into Josh’s veins. He dug in and hammered down the trail — which abruptly ended around the next corner. He didn’t even have time to hit his brakes.
Josh hung in the air for what seemed like forever. The pile of rocks at the bottom of the cliff crept outward in a semi-circle, but rested on a bed of sand. If he could clear the rocks, he and his bike just might survive the landing. He clicked out of his cleats and bailed in preparation for what was sure to be a major wipeout — praying he wouldn’t break any bones or taco a wheel.
Right before impact, he remembered suspension spells. Too late. He slammed into the sand, rag dolled another ten feet, and wound up on his back staring at the sky, unable to breathe. He did a quick inventory of his body as he waited for his diaphragm to quit spasming. Ribs, bruised but not broken. Helmet missing, possible concussion. Back sprained, spinal cord intact. Legs fine, no injury. Left wrist … compound fracture.
Josh tried to cast a pain-away spell on himself, but he didn’t really know how to do it. He got some relief, but nothing like what Channie did for him when she’d healed his scalp. He managed a few shallow breaths, then a deep inhale that felt like someone had stabbed him in the chest with a spear. He sat up, cradling his left arm and swore with tears streaming down his face.
He could sit here and wait for Ryder to catch up and put his out of his misery, or he could keep going and give Channie a little more time to escape. He struggled to his feet and whispered, “I love you, babe,” then smiled when their bond glowed. He let every tender emotion flow out of his heart to hers until a flood of grief rushed out. He squeezed his eyes shut as he pulled his energy back inside, stopping the flow. The last thing he wanted was for Channie to come looking for him. He kept his
eyes shut and pictured the two trackers, focusing on the threat they posed to Channie and used every bit of energy in his power-well to cast what he hoped was a warning spell.
Josh took two steps then stumbled and fell. His overloaded pain-receptors intervened and knocked him out when his wrist hit the ground.
He wasn’t out for very long, but he realized he wasn’t going to get very far like this. He was too low on power to heal his wrist with magic, even if he knew how. But that didn’t mean he had to give up.
If he could reset the bone, he might be able to continue riding one-handed. A fallen oak tree caught his attention. It rested against the trunk of a large pine, forming a cradle of sorts. One branch, low to the ground, forked up at a tight angle. He could sit on the ground, lean against the pine tree, wedge his hand into the fork and pull the bones back into place.
Josh gagged, then vomited. If he couldn’t bear to think about it, how was he going to actually do it? His power-name might be Valor, but he was no Aron Ralston. The man had amputated his own arm with a dull knife after a boulder pinned him to a canyon wall. He still had to hike for miles — rappelling, one-handed, down a cliff — before he was rescued. Josh had chosen Aron Ralston when given an assignment to write about a real-life hero in the sixth grade. Aron had claimed that thoughts of his family had given him the courage to do what he had to do to survive.
Josh closed his eyes and thought about the first time he’d ever seen Channie. The way she seemed to appear out of nowhere. She’d looked like an angel with moonlight sparkling in her hair and shining in her eyes. He’d been totally mesmerized, even before she cast the come-hither spell on him.
He gritted his teeth and said, “Suck it up and just do it. Do it for her.”
It took him ten excruciating minutes to wedge his hand into the fork. He had to stop and rest three times to keep from passing out. Once situated, he spent another couple of minutes debating whether or not to give it a trial tug before pulling in earnest, but decided that was pointless.
It was even more painful than he’d imagined and took two tries before he succeeded. Now all he had to do was dislodge his hand out of the forked branch.
“That has got to be the bravest damn thing I ever seen.”
Josh’s heart plunged to the ground. He lifted his chin and glared at Ryder.
Ryder turned his head and spit then made a chk-chk sound and turned his horse away from the cliff’s ledge. He leaned back in the saddle as the animal sat on his haunches and slid down a thirty degree slope. It dawned on Josh that the man’s name had to be Rider, not Ryder.
A completely random and useless revelation, considering he was about to die.
Rider dismounted and dropped the horse’s reins to the ground. “Stay put and let me take a peek at that arm.”
Josh had no reason to trust the man, but he was in shock and had no will to resist. Besides, his hand was still stuck in the tree. “I can’t get loose.”
Rider leaned over and stared at Josh’s wrist then cast a pain-away spell that dulled the agony to a pulsing ache. He said, “I ain’t no healer, but looks to me, you got the bones lined up. All you need to do is knit ‘em together.”
“I can’t. I used all my power to …” Josh pressed his lips together and squeezed his eyes closed.
“To cast a warning spell, I know. I’d like to know who you think was gonna feel it other than me and Jimmy.”
“I don’t know, but I thought it was worth a try.”
“Sorry kid. There ain’t nobody in these here parts for miles around. Not even Empties. You want me to knit them bones for ya?”
Rider’s compassion confused Josh but he had nothing to lose. He nodded.
Rider supported Josh’s arm with one hand and placed the other on top of the punctured skin, cupping his palm so he didn’t actually touch the wound. “There ain’t no pain-away spell I know of that can keep this from hurting like a son-of-an-Empty. You ready?”
Before Josh could answer, a flash of pain, every bit as agonizing as setting the bone, tore through his arm. He blacked out, but when he came to, his arm was completely healed. So were his ribs and his back. Now that the worst injuries were taken care of, he noticed his pounding head. He almost asked Rider to heal his concussion too, but remembered what Channie’d said about only a healer having the skill to “mess with a person’s brain.”
“Why are you helping me?”
Rider handed Josh his helmet then grinned and said, “The race ain’t over.”
“Are you still planning on killing me?”
“Only if you lose.”
~***~
Instead of giving Josh a head start, Rider led the way to the head of another extreme bike trail. It wasn’t as well maintained as the first one, but it gave Josh an advantage he didn’t have before.
He bombed the trail with no regard for personal safety. If he didn’t win this race, he’d be dead anyway. And every mile was one more mile between Rider and Channie. There wasn’t anything he could do about Jimmy, except hope the man’s laziness would keep him in his tent until Rider returned.
The race was close with no clear leader. Rider’s horse couldn’t run on the man-made course but he could definitely run. And jump. He flew over fallen logs as if he had wings. Josh couldn’t help but admire the beast as he thrashed the mountain, making his own trail.
The wooden ramps looked like primitive bridges. The two-by-fours, laid horizontally into the track like a washboard, vibrated Josh’s bike and body. His wrist ached, but it wasn’t any worse than any of his other rehabilitated injuries. In fact, his rotator cuff hurt more than anything. He ignored it.
Centrifugal force added to the feeling of compression as Josh leaned into a curve. His body tensed, coiled and ready, for the jump at the end of the ramp.
Just as he launched, Rider shot through the gap — leaning so far forward, his head was level with the horse’s outstretched neck.
Josh table-topped his bike, kicking it out to the side to avoid a mid-air collision. It wasn’t a perfect stunt. He barely got lined up again before landing but it was pretty amazing. He wished he’d had his helmet cam running. Even if he lived to tell the tale, no one would ever believe him.
Josh lost track of Rider as he shot down the endless series of man-made ramps, berms and jumps. The last berm spit him out into another damned ravine. At least this one was more dirt than rock. The lower elevation and fewer trees meant less snow. Except for a few puddles in the bottom of the ravine, the ground was dry. Josh could ride a lot faster here. But so could Rider. Josh was in front but Rider was gaining. The ravine curved upwards, a natural ramp. Josh flew over it and dropped his gaze to the ground, looking for the best landing. What he saw, clenched every muscle in his body.
Two obstacles, an exposed root and a fallen tree, blocked the ravine. The root took up the bottom third while the tree blocked the top half. The root was too thick to power over, but if he bunny hopped onto it, the tree would knock his head off. He was going to land his jump right in front of it so hitting his brakes was not an option. Josh made a perfect landing then rode up the side of the ravine as if it were a half-pipe and threaded the slot with his bike and body in a horizontal position.
He rocketed up the other side of the ravine, cleared the edge with a kick-out to the right and let a out whoop of exultation — momentarily forgetting the life and death nature of this race.
An answering shout of terror brought him back to Earth. Josh lifted his right elbow and lowered his chin to peek under his arm — just in time to see Rider sail over the top of the fallen tree.
Josh clicked his left foot loose and planted it on the ground as he yanked his bike sideways into a power-skid. It took a good three seconds to come to a complete stop. When he turned around, Rider was looking straight at him, eyes wide but unfocused. There was something surreal about the brown spittle leaking out of his slack-jawed and gaping mouth, dripping off his beard.
Josh ditched his bike and ran back up the ravine.
He knelt beside Rider and reached out to check for a pulse. Rider blinked and grabbed Josh’s wrist. “I cain’t feel my legs.”
Rider’s horse stuck his head through the opening between the tree and the overgrown root and neighed softly.
Rider smiled and said, “It’s not your fault, Buddy.” He turned his head and locked his gaze on Josh’s face. “You ever been on a horse?”
“No.” Josh removed his helmet and set it on the ground.
“I already know you ain’t a healer, so ain’t no point asking you to fix my back.”
“I healed a cut.” Josh pulled the gash in his jeans apart to show Rider the scar across his thigh.
Rider looked at it and snorted. “Like I said. You ain’t no healer.”
“It might not look very pretty but it feels perfectly fine.”
“My back’s broke. I need a Master Healer.”
“I don’t know what to tell you.” Even if Wisdom were in the area, she’d be more likely to kill the man than heal him. But Rider was right. Josh had no idea how he’d healed his leg. Trying to fix a broken back with magic he didn’t understand was beyond reckless.
Rider’s eyes filled with tears. “I don’t want to lay out here and die of thirst or get ate up by varmints. Just kill me.”
“I’m not going to kill you.”
“Then get my gun outta my saddle bag so I can do it myself.”
“No.”
“Will you at least put me on Buddy? Just lay me across the saddle, he’ll take me back to camp.”
“If I move you, it could cause permanent damage to your spinal cord.”
“Ain’t nothing more permanent than death.”
“How far are we from the nearest town?”
“You ain’t planning on just leaving me here to die, are you? After I done went and fixed your arm?”
“I’m going to go get help.”
“Whistler’s Gulch is about twelve miles from here, but there ain’t nothing but Empties living there.”
“Empties may not be able to fix your back, but they can save your life.”
TAKEN: Book Two Page 7