But she didn’t have to. That was what the two men riding behind them were for. Levi and Everett were more than the first members of Connor’s security force; they were his brothers-in-law and best friends.
Everyone was tired and sore from riding long days and sleeping in uncomfortable places. They were on this trip for her, and they’d all listened intently over breakfast this morning while she shared the news of Tim being her biological father.
There was no shock, no judgment. Every one of them displayed the common thread of decency and compassion that seemed to be woven throughout the Land—at least in the parts she’d visited thus far.
Ahead, outcroppings of volcanic rock changed the terrain. As they rounded the first massive rock’s jagged edges, Connor led them away from the coast. “We can’t continue through here.” He pointed inland. “We’ll have to ride over the foothills.”
Bailey cast her gaze across the miles of untouched land around them. The foothills’ dried grass met the coast in muted shades of brown, leaving the hopeful color to the sky above. Riding over the hills also meant a longer route to where Tim was stranded.
The afternoon sun sank behind the mountains ahead. The mountain peak directly in front of her didn’t look as high as it once seemed. Its shadowy peak warned her not to stare as if gazing at it might provoke it to swallow her soul like an unexpected depression. When they lost the direct sunlight, the temperature began to drop. No matter how ominous the mountain’s shadow felt, the horses stomped over the grassy hills, unafraid. She could have let go of the reins completely and Gee would have followed Connor anywhere, much like his men.
When they reached the top of the next hill, Bailey pulled her binoculars out of her backpack and scanned the flora ahead. Mostly conifers and the occasional gray leaf tree. In a dark valley between them and the mountain, the trees thickened—not like a forest but like there was a body of water in the valley. A herd of deer moved throughout the valley like ants on a picnic blanket.
She raised her voice so Connor could hear her over the horses clomping through the grass. “The river Tim mentioned must be in that valley.”
Connor stopped his horse. He signaled everyone to pull up beside him, then drew a folded paper out of his jacket pocket. “John’s map shows that river valley as the farthest western point anyone has traveled to,” he lowered his volume, “and returned to tell about it.”
Bailey’s insides fluttered. Gee must have sensed her excitement because she shuffled her front hooves a little. Bailey bent forward to pet her horse’s neck but kept looking at Connor. “Then that has to be where Tim is. Let’s go!”
He raised a halting hand. “Not so fast.” Then pointing at the western sky, he looked at Everett. “About forty-five minutes of daylight left?”
Everett glanced at the sky. “Give or take.”
Connor turned his eyes to Levi. “It will take at least that long to ride down there and cut a path to the river.”
Levi simply nodded. The man easily could go a full day without speaking.
Connor looked at Revel. “We need to set up camp here while we still have the light.”
Bailey checked the clock on her two-way radio. “It’s only four-fifteen.”
As soon as the words came out of her mouth, she realized the guys were right. The farther south they traveled in the Land, the earlier the sun set this time of year. She surveyed the valley through her binoculars. “If I see anything that looks like a jet canopy or a campsite or smoke from a campfire, I’m going for it.”
Connor refolded his map. “Don’t you dare. Not this close to dark.”
“No one has to come with me.”
“We’re all staying together.” Connor gave her a finalizing stare. “There aren’t any trails down there. You won’t be able to see and your little flashlight won’t do you any good.” He lessened the intensity of his gaze. “Besides, I have an idea to help make sure we find Tim in the morning. Let’s set up camp and get the fire going, then we’ll raise him on the radio.”
Revel broke away from the group first, dismounting and walking his horse to the center of the hill. Bailey swung down from the saddle and followed him. She pitched the tents with Sophia while the guys searched for firewood. Between every chore, Bailey checked the valley, which grew darker by the minute.
As the sun set, the temperature plunged, but the wind remained calm. Bailey crawled into her tent to get the coat Lydia had given her. Sophia was curled up on her bedroll on her half of the tiny tent, shivering.
“You okay?”
Sophia’s teeth chattered. “I’m just cold.”
“The guys have the fire going. Come out there with us.”
“My legs are too tired from riding.” Her voice lacked its usual optimism. “I just need to rest.”
Bailey opened her bedroll, which consisted of a thick pad, a cotton sheet, and a quilt that still smelled like John Colburn’s house. She inhaled the homey scent and imagined John baking bread and Lydia poking lavender and rosemary sachets into every drawer. If she let her imagination continue, she would miss them.
The long trip was probably making Sophia homesick for Good Springs too. Plus, she had a boyfriend to miss. Bailey laid her quilt over Sophia’s blanket. “Hang in there. We’ll find Tim tomorrow and head home.”
“Thank you.” Sophia pulled the blankets up to her chin and it muffled her voice. “I’ll have this warmed up for when you come back in. If I’m asleep, just take it.”
“Okay.”
As Bailey walked from the tent to the campfire, she stretched the knit cap from Sybil down over her ears. The last light of the day gave everything an eerie shadow as if she were peering through a dark veil.
All four men looked up at her like they’d been talking about her. She buttoned her coat as she approached them. “Am I interrupting something?”
Connor held out his hand, palm up. “Where’s your radio?”
“Right here.” She patted her coat pocket. “Why?”
He kept his hand out. “I want to talk to Tim.”
She drew it out of her pocket but didn’t hand it over. “I’ll call him.”
Connor waited a beat with his hand out then retracted it and crossed his arms. “Fine. Then let me use your binoculars while you raise him.”
“What for?”
“Just give me the binoculars while you get Tim on the radio.”
Levi and Everett stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Connor, and Revel hovered behind Bailey. They all knew something she didn’t. The sooner she called Tim, the sooner she would find out.
She handed Connor her binoculars then pressed the two-way’s power button. Static hummed from the speaker. The buzz grew louder as she turned the volume all the way up so the guys could hear without crowding her. She took a half step away from them and pushed the talk button. “Tim? Are you there?”
When she released the button, his tired voice filled the speaker. “I’m here. Did you make it to Southpoint?”
“Yes, and we rode west all day. We’re on the last hill before a river valley then a mountain.”
“Are you near the coast?”
She looked toward the faint southern horizon. Though the ocean wasn’t visible from here, it couldn’t be more than a few miles away. “We had to ride inland because of the rocks on the coast, but not far. The mountain directly west of us looks to be the most southerly peak.”
“It sounds like you made it to the right place.”
Connor stepped closer to her. “Let me speak with him.”
She pushed the talk button. “Tim, Connor and the guys are here. Connor wants to talk to you.”
Connor offered her back the binoculars and held his other hand out for the radio. She thought she was over his every move feeling like a power play. Apparently, trusting him fully would take more than one congenial conversation. He’d said he had an idea for finding Tim. If trusting Connor with the radio helped her rescue Tim quicker, she would oblige. She let go of the radio and took the b
inoculars.
Connor lifted the two-way to his mouth. “Tim, Connor Bradshaw here. Bailey told us you still have some supplies from the boat’s emergency kit. Do you have any flares? Over.”
Tim’s tone thickened the way one man’s voice does when he speaks to another. “Yes. Still have all three in the emergency kit. I have the flare gun right here beside me. I keep it loaded now because of… Over.”
Bailey wanted to grab the radio and ask Tim to finish his sentence, but Connor spoke again.
“We’re standing on top of the last hill east of the river valley. Bailey has her binoculars ready.” He looked at each of the guys and signaled with his hand, assigning each a portion of the valley to watch. “Save two of your flares for tomorrow, but shoot one straight up right now. Hopefully, we will see it from here and be able to identify your location. Over.”
“Okay. Hold on. I have to get out from under the jet canopy.” Static buzzed then stopped. “Um, stand by.”
She almost smiled at Tim’s effort to sound official while talking to Connor. He was never like that in the classroom—even insisted his students call him Professor Tim—and he certainly was never like that with her.
They all watched the dark smudge of the river valley, waiting for Tim.
“All right,” Tim said at last. “Here it goes.”
Bailey held the binoculars just under her eyes, ready to zoom in if she saw something. The sound of the flare gun’s shot popped through the speakers. Within seconds, an orange dot appeared above the trees slightly north of where she expected. Her heart vibrated inside her chest as it surged excited blood through her veins. “There it is!”
She grabbed the radio from Connor. “We saw it! Tim, we can see where you are!” She looked at Connor, who was still staring at the fading orange light as it arched and fizzled over the river valley. She pushed the talk button again. “You aren’t far. I can get to you now. I know I can.”
Tim’s voice filled with angst. “No, Bailey. Don’t come down here in the dark. I mean it.”
“But I don’t want to leave you alone and without medicine another night.”
He didn’t respond immediately. She lifted the radio to her mouth to say over, but paused when he spoke first. “Promise me you won’t cross the river until morning, Bailey. It isn’t safe.”
The quiver in his voice made Levi, Everett, and Revel all look at Connor. Bailey watched them as she pressed the talk button. “Tim, is there something we need to know?”
Only static buzzed from the radio. Bailey’s happy heart slowed its rate to a steady but powerful pulse, the way it used to when she would step onto the mat before a fight. Why wasn’t Tim responding? What was he afraid of?
Finally, he whispered. “Sorry. I was getting back under the canopy. I need to turn off the radio now and be quiet for the night. When you come down here tomorrow, stay on your side of the river until you see my camp, then cross. My boat ran into a sandbar straight out from my camp. It’s shallow there. You might be able to walk your horses across. Please, be careful after you cross the river. And quiet. I can’t explain. Can’t see well enough without my glasses to give a decent explanation. Good night. I love you, Bailey.”
A lump rose in her throat, but she managed to get the words out. “I love you too.”
* * *
Darkness grew as day slipped into night, and points of white starlight emerged in the black sky. Since the campfire was burning behind Revel at the center of the hill, he could clearly see Bailey’s beauty turn from fierce to fretful. Yet even when fear threatened her, she was never fragile.
Revel swallowed hard while he watched Bailey end her conversation with Tim. Each movement of her fingers was slower than the last as she turned off her radio. Finally, her hands stilled completely and she scowled at the device. “This is all my fault. I shouldn’t have let Tim talk me into coming to the Land in the first place. He was too weak to travel.”
Revel was no stranger to regret. If he could talk to her alone, he could help her through this. He gave Connor a look, and it worked.
Connor nudged Levi then caught Everett’s eye. He motioned with his chin for his brothers-in-law to follow him back to the campfire.
While the other men walked away, Revel stayed on the crest of the hill with Bailey. “This isn’t your fault.”
“Yes, it is. When Tim told me he was my father, he said it was the reason he arranged for us to come to the Land. He wanted to give me a chance at a good life. He traveled across the world for me. I let him even though I knew he was too sick for this.”
Every time she blamed herself, the pit in his stomach widened. He tried to keep his voice level. “It wasn’t traveling that put him in this situation. It was what happened on the shore when you arrived in the Land that ruined everything for him, for you.”
She waved a dismissive hand. “Forget it. Doesn’t matter now.”
It mattered to him. For the first time, he felt the urge to tell her how much it mattered to him and why. Confession might be good for the soul, but it wasn’t his soul he was worried about. Telling her might upset her more and make the journey harder for her. Then again, telling her might free her from the unwarranted guilt.
He opened his mouth to say the words, but his voice tightened like the noose that had killed the man at the inn so long ago. Hadn’t he caused enough trouble in his life?
Instead of telling her, he lightly squeezed her shoulder through her thick woolen coat. “Tim will be all right tonight. If we break camp at first light, we can be down there shortly after dawn to help him. Try not to worry all night. You need your sleep.” He gently pulled on her elbow, trying to guide her to walk back to the camp.
Her feet didn’t budge and she started to chew her fingernail. “Why did Tim say for us to be quiet when we reach his side of the river? What’s over there that has him so scared?”
Revel had heard the fear in Tim’s voice too but wanted to relieve Bailey’s worries, not add to them. “Tim…,” he hesitated to use the term, “your father endured a terrible ordeal—almost drowning then being swept away from you—all while being sick. And now, he has been alone for weeks. If I were him, I would be frightened too.”
She glanced up at him with trusting eyes. It was a look he didn’t deserve. “Do you think there’s something dangerous in the mountains?”
He shook his head, able to lie to her with a gesture but not with his tongue.
She returned her gaze to the dark valley below. “Connor says there aren’t any large, predatory animals in the Land. Is that true?”
“Yes. As far as we know.”
“You once told me there are a lot of old scary stories about the mountains. Do any of them involve… I don’t know… bears, mountain lions, Bigfoot?”
“Big who?”
“Never mind. Wolves?”
“No one has ever mentioned seeing such animals. Tim probably just heard a deer in the brush.”
“Tim sounded like he was afraid of something more worrisome than deer.” She switched fingers to bite another nail as she thought. “Could someone be living over there? Someone who doesn’t like visitors?”
He wanted to deny her every concern, but how could he calm her fears when he was wondering the same things? Maybe the men who’d once terrorized Good Springs had relatives out here. He worked to keep his tone light. “I don’t think it’s anything for us to worry about tonight. Connor will have a plan no matter what we encounter. He always does. We’ll find Tim’s camp early tomorrow. Everything will be all right.”
“Yeah, well, it better be. Otherwise…” She shook her head but didn’t finish her sentence.
“Otherwise what?”
“Nothing. It’s just that… knowing he came here for me and I led him to his death, I don’t know if I would ever get over that.”
The longer strands of her short hair peeked out from beneath her knit cap and hung over one eye. His fingertips yearned to trace the hair off her face. Instead, he shoved his hands into
his coat pockets.
He’d been warned not to get distracted. His job was to protect her; his hope was to redeem what he could of his tragic mistake. Right now, he would do anything to spare her the misery of guilt. She needed to know the truth more than he needed to conceal it.
He checked the campfire behind him to make sure the others were too far away to hear. “Bailey, if I could go down there right now and rescue your father myself, I would do it. I’d spare you one more night of misery and spare you the danger of…” he withheld his speculation before it could give her more to worry about, “of whatever struggles you might face.”
She shrugged one shoulder casually. “I’ve had worse struggles than this. Worse nights than this. The night I came to the Land, for instance. At least tonight I know Tim is alive.” A slight grin lightened her amber eyes. “Plus, I have you clowns to help me now.”
Her humor eased his nerves, but it didn’t last for long. He was here to fix what he could of the disaster he’d caused. He had hoped to take that secret to his grave. He’d even hoped for the grave a few times after that horrid night.
But then Connor told him to watch over Bailey, and once he got to know her, the guilt lessened and his fascination grew into friendship. Now she stood before him, trusting him, just as she’d trusted him enough to fall asleep by him last night on the ship.
Maybe if he confessed the truth, the guilt would stop squeezing the air out of his lungs. Telling her the whole truth might tighten their growing bond. She would respect the truth, and she was certainly strong enough to handle it.
His fists tightened in his pockets. “Bailey, there is something I must tell you.”
A tiny line formed between her symmetrical brows. She held up a hand. “Wait. Please, don’t get weird and tell me you love me and want me to have your babies or something like that.”
A surprise laugh escaped his throat. No woman in the Land had ever spoken to him so crassly. If Bailey kept it up, Revel might find himself loving her. “I care about you a great deal, but no, that isn’t what I need to say.”
Uncharted Destiny (The Uncharted Series Book 7) Page 9