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.She yelled so loud that her voice was hoarse within the first hour, but she didn’t care.Somewhere in the back of the line, Axel rode without holding the reins, letting the pressure from his calves and feet against the horse’s flank guide the animal.He kept his hands glued to his binoculars, watching the horizon out beside and in front of him, keeping a lookout on the off chance the kid had simply gotten lost and was heading the wrong direction.Mason didn’t want to worry the group, but the look of the clouds in the distance to the west wasn’t the most reassuring.These weren’t the fluffy piles of downy layers that had shaded them during their noon rest.These were those clouds’ angry cousins, dark piles of billowing vapor that rolled as they moved.Far off near the horizon, a wall of water cascading from the clouds, drenching the ground beneath them with a sudden furious cloudburst.He hoped it wasn’t a sign of what weather awaited either their group or the herd.+++“Where’s your sweet young man?” an elderly rider asked Rose as they connected along the trail.Rose smiled at her reassuringly.“Oh, he’s around.He had some errand to run with a few of the other riders.I’m sure he’ll catch back up to the drive by nightfall.Maybe by morning, at the latest.” Rose felt awkward lying so openly and to a paid guest of the Carsons, too, but she knew that upsetting their visitors wouldn’t be wise, not with so much already happening.“That’s nice, dear.It must be wonderful to be so comfortable out here in the open range like this.I’d be far too terrified to stay out of doors at night all alone.I wish I could have been brought up more like you young people, eager to get outside and happy to stay put wherever your trail riding takes you! It’s just not how life was in the city back then.”“I may not be too familiar with big towns, but I’m guessing it hasn’t gotten much safer in the city, either! No, I’ll take the simple life out here.I can’t say as I’m as adventurous as some of these long-time cowboys, but I’m happy enough seeing the stars come out over my little cabin every night.”She put on a cheerful face for the woman, but inside was another story.It was Rose’s turn to worry, even though she knew deep down that Mason and the other riders often stayed out for weeks at a time when working with the crews back at the ranch.But somehow that was different, at least in her mind.While the vast Carson Hill property was so large that no one could possibly even see it all in one day, it was still comforting to know that they were on the same property on those nights when work separated them.Out here, though, was a whole other matter.At Carson Hill, as wild as the life seemed and as dangerous as a cowboy’s work was on a daily basis, there was always the safety net of knowing exactly where someone was and there were ways to get to him in a crisis.Out here, it was anyone’s guess.This was the deep end of the ocean, the unknown and bottomless hole of open land.Rose had no way of knowing where Mason was at that very moment, and while that was unsettling, it was very near panicking to her that no one else knew his location, either.Be safe, Mason.Find that boy and come back to me soon.She put on a brave face for the other riders in her group and tried her best not to let this new fear eat at her.Tomorrow she would be back at work in the truck, and as much as she wanted to enjoy this day of freedom, she couldn’t think about anything else but a missing child and a wayward hero gone to rescue him.Chapter SixteenAs the group came to different turn offs along the trail, the members peeled off in pairs to continue the search.Laney’s mom was the first to go with Judy, both of them heading onto the crest line that ran the length of the river valley.Some ten miles later, Laney’s dad and Joseph Carson peeled off to the east at a fork in the trail, leading down into an area the map affectionately called Rattler Ridge.She watched her dad visibly shudder before following Joseph into the narrow opening between waist-high scrub bushes, his horse even less sure about this direction than he was.That left three remaining groups, who each separated one by one.Laney was paired with Axel, at his insistence, instantly causing her suspicions to rise.This guy didn’t even like her, let alone enjoying having to speak to her.They shared one sudden and comforting hug, and supposedly he was her savior? She looked to Mason who only shrugged.“He does know the region better than anyone out here.We grew up only thirty miles from here,” he explained, pointing the way to the east with a jerk of his head.“If I was lost out here, I’d want to know that Ax was the guy out looking for me.Besides, that’ll keep you in closer connection with your parents if you two take this fork.”Laney sighed and agreed, reminding herself that she wouldn’t be looking for Oren if she hadn’t been the one to tell him he could go.She’d gotten so caught up in trying to make up for all the horrible things she’d said and done in the past that she didn’t stop to think that his riding in a separate group would put him out here without anyone to look after him.It was her fault he was in danger.Why hadn’t she insisted he get some rest today?You know why.Because you’ve been a hateful monster to him and now you think giving him whatever he wants will make up for being a lousy sister? She knew no one else would speak those words out loud to her, but she didn’t need to wait for anyone else to say what everyone had to have been thinking.She’d made it more than obvious on the ride from airport, showing everyone on the trip just what she thought of Oren.But it’s not true! I love him! He’s an angel and I don’t deserve him for a brother! New tears threatened to fill her eyelids but she fought them back when she saw Axel turn around and gesture for her to keep up.She spurred her horse forward as the other riders went farther back the trail in search of their own places to begin looking for a lost little boy.Laney urged her horse forward and her heart swelled when the stupid animal finally did what she wanted it to.Maybe it could sense her heartache and fear.That was a thing with animals, right? Axel must have been able to as well, since he hadn’t baited her or said anything condescending since they’d left the last camp.If he could do it, big dumb animal that he was, too, then surely her horse could have picked up on her mental state and decided to just play nice.Deep down, though, she knew that wasn’t true.The horse wasn’t the one who had changed.Conversations swirled through her mind, casual remarks and biting criticisms she’d made towards others just in the last few months or so, all of them bringing a flush of shame to her cheeks.But that’s not who she was anymore, a conscious decision that she’d only made a day or two ago, to be sure, but one that she had every intention of following through with.And that’s how she came to find herself bargaining with God.I’ll be good, she promised, pleading with him in her mind.I’ll be good to people, to everyone, to my parents, and most of all to Oren.Just let us find him.Bring him home safe.The sound of static coming from Axel’s radio jolted her from her impromptu prayer.She leaned forward and listened, instinctively kicking her horse lightly to make it move closer so she could hear better.“Sorry, Laney, it was just a radio check,” Axel called back to her, seeing the look of hope on her face and realizing she thought someone might have found her brother.“I’ll be sure to tell you if they say anything.But up ahead you’ll want to stay close [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]