Chapter Twenty-One

 

RONI ROSE THROUGH the depths of unconsciousness and with it came a thunderous pounding in her head. She cautiously opened her eyes to discover she was lying facedown on the riverbank. Her eyesight blurred and focused repeatedly. She blinked several times to rid her eyes of the film that seemed intent on coating them. A heavy drop of something hit the side of her head. Heavy breathing above her and the swish of a tail gave Roni the telltale sign Sparky straddled her.

“Goddammit, that better not be piss, Sparky,” she mumbled against the ground. She tentatively reached up and touched her face. Her fingers came away bloody. “Crap. What the hell happened?”

She stiffly rolled over onto her back and immediately regretted it. The intense dizziness threatened to make her pass out again. She fought it and concentrated on taking deep, even breaths. The world slowly stopped spinning.

The shuffling of hooves and hot breath on her face coaxed her into opening her eyes. Her vision swam slightly until she focused on the hoof planted between her legs. The events leading up to what she could remember rushed back. Her stomach lurched. She swallowed the urge to vomit. Cody! The mountain lion!

A stirrup dangled close by, and she reached for it, intent on getting to her feet. Something wet dripped onto her outstretched hand. Blood. Unbidden, Roni’s gaze crawled up Sparky’s body. Wounds identical to the ones that’d recently healed marked his hindquarters. Only these were deeper and more severe. And there were more of them.

“Oh, God, Sparky.”

She pulled herself to her feet and ignored another onslaught of dizziness. After blinking long and hard, she attempted to examine the horse’s wounds. Several were deep and bleeding steadily. Sparky shifted uncomfortably. And that’s when she noticed the deep gouges in the back of the saddle where the cat had bitten and held on.

She wrapped an arm around Sparky’s neck for support. “Don’t worry, buddy, we’ll take care of you.”

“Roni?”

Cody! Roni damned herself for briefly forgetting about him. She turned her head toward his hiding spot. Her knees buckled, and she slipped to the ground.

Next thing she knew, water dribbled out of her mouth and she sputtered and choked. She looked up into Cody’s concerned eyes. Her head rested on his little lap. She pushed the canteen away to keep from inhaling more of the liquid. “What happened?”

Cody dabbed her head wound with her wet handkerchief. “I think you were surprised to see me. When I said something, you went down like a shitload of bricks.”

She laughed despite the painful pounding in her head. “I did, huh?”

“Yeah, but don’t tell my dad I said that.”

“Promise. Can you help me sit up?” She pushed against the ground, and with Cody’s surprisingly strong shove from behind, she was able to stand upright. She used Cody’s shoulder to steady herself, and she smiled as she felt his arm go around her waist. She searched for Sparky and relaxed when she saw him grazing upstream. “I guess if he can eat, he’s not too bad off.”

Cody followed her gaze. “He’s awesome. He killed the mountain lion,” he said, matter-of-factly.

She whipped her head around to look at Cody and nearly fell down again. She tightened her grip on his shoulder. “I think I need to sit down.” He helped her to one of the logs near where she’d first spotted him when she came to. She took a drink from the offered canteen and wiped her mouth on her sleeve. “Okay, tell me how you know he killed it.”

Cody swiveled on his seat and pointed downstream. Roni caught her breath. The pounding in her head kept time with her increased heart rate. The body of the cat laid half in and half out of the water about fifty feet from where they sat. It was clearly dead. The mountain lion’s head was submerged in a small pool of water. “I guess he did.”

Splashing from upriver drew their attention. Sparky raised his head, whinnied, and got answers from the three horses headed their way. “There’s your dad.” Roni patted Cody on the back and smiled.

“Dad!” He got up and ran to greet his father. David dismounted, ran the remaining distance, and gathered him into his arms.

Selena rode up with Chenoa in tow. Puller barked from his pocket in the vest. A wide smile of relief painted Roni’s face. She’d never been so happy to see someone in her life.

Selena dropped her reins and ran to her. “Jesus, what the hell happened? Are you okay? Did Sparky throw you again?” Puller wiggled out and jumped onto her lap. She had to push him away to stop his face-kissing.

“Shhh.” She put a finger against Selena’s lips. “I’m fine. I got whacked on the side of the head pretty good. But Sparky is the hero of the day.” She pointed at the cat’s carcass with her chin.

“Sparky killed the mountain lion? Wow. I mean. Wow!” Selena looked back and forth between the dead lion and Roni in disbelief. Her eyes settled on her face. “Stay here. I need to get the med kit.”

Roni swallowed hard and watched Selena trot to her horse. She heard but couldn’t make out the words she said to David. He followed Selena back to where she sat.

“Cody here has told me quite the tale. How can I ever repay you for finding him?”

“I wouldn’t even think of accepting anything. Apparently I needed him as much as he needed me.” She smiled at Cody. “Right?”

“Right.” Cody grinned back at her.

“Roni, hold still.” Selena grabbed her chin and shone a light into her eyes. “Your pupils are a tad uneven. I think you might have a slight concussion.”

“She did fall a couple of times,” Cody said.

Roni shot him a warning glance. “I’m fine.”

“Don’t be afraid of her, Cody. She’s really just a softy.” Selena rummaged around in her bag and removed scissors and tweezers. “Tilt your head to the side. I need to dress your head wound.”

“Ow!”

“Oh, hush. See, Cody? I barely touched her.” Cody giggled despite the sideways glance Roni gave him.

“Cody, will you do me a big favor and bring Sparky down here? As soon as Miss Frankenstein gets done with me, I need to check him out.” He didn’t need to be asked twice and took off at a brisk walk.

“Are you sure about that?” David watched his son. “I’m a little concerned that horse is too big for him to handle.”

“He’ll be fine, trust me. He may look a little rough around the edges, but you have a brave little boy.”

“Thanks. He’s pretty special. We lost his mom to cancer six months ago. It was his idea to come camping so we could get out of the house and away from the memories.”

Selena wrapped a wad of gauze around Roni’s head. “Do you feel dizzy or nauseous?”

“No. Come on, I need to check out Sparky’s wounds. Bring your kit.” She pushed herself up and met Cody and Sparky halfway.

Selena followed her. She sighed and rolled her eyes, which elicited another giggle out of Cody. “See what I have to deal with?” She stood next to Roni, who carefully palpated the horse’s injuries. “What are you thinking?”

“I’m not sure with the extent of these wounds, that he’ll be able to make the climb up to the cabin.” She turned to Selena. “Give Jeff a quick call and let him know we found Cody. Tell him to let Elk City know.”

“I called him as soon as we saw you with Cody. Told him if you needed help I’d call him back.”

“Good job.”

“How about we take Sparky to our trailer?” David said. “I’ll haul him wherever you want. Really. It’s the least I can do.”

“You should see a doctor too, Roni,” Selena said.

“Selena, can I talk to you for a minute?” She walked over to where her hat laid, gingerly picked it up, and gently placed it on her head. She repositioned it to make it fit more comfortably.

Selena followed her over. “I know what you’re going to say, but there’s no room for discussion. Both of you need to see doctors.”

“But it’ll just be you and Jeff up there.”

“And that differs from just you and Jeff up there, how?” Selena put her hands on her hips and pursed her lips. A slight gust of wind lifted her hair from her shoulders.

“God, you’re beautiful when you’re pissed.”

“Quit changing the subject. You’re going. Besides, you could use a week off.”

“A week?” Roni yanked her hat off and glared at Selena. “No way. A couple days, that’s all I’m promising.” Selena smiled and Roni melted. “Damn it. You knew I’d give in.” She looked back at David and Cody, but they’d moved off, evidently to give them a little more privacy.

“Roni, you may be ready in a couple of days, but think of Sparky. Didn’t it take him a full week to recover from the last attack? His wounds are much more serious this time, and I doubt you’d want Charlie taking care of him while you’re up here.”

Anger flooded Roni’s chest. “Fuck. I hadn’t thought of that. All right. A week. That’s all I’m going to promise. I’ll ride Chenoa out of here and pony Sparky. I’ll do the same when we come back. He should be fine.”

Selena rubbed Roni’s arm and briefly linked their fingers. “I’ll miss you. It seems like one of us is always heading off in a different direction.”

Roni sighed. “I know. I want to kiss you.”

“That’s probably not a good idea, since we have company and you’re counting on them for a ride.”

“I’ll call you on the radio tonight to make sure you got back okay. I love you.”

“I love you too. Oh, and thanks for the wonderful campout.” Selena gave her a flirtatious grin and discreetly ran a finger down her chest.

“Stop that before I lose control and ravage you on the spot.” She looked over her shoulder. “I guess I better get going so you can get to the cabin before midnight. At least you won’t have to worry about the cat. Although I want you to take the rifle with you in case it had a mate.”

“Okay. I’ll be careful. I promise. See you in a week then.”

They walked back to where the horses stood. While she switched the saddle from Sparky to Chenoa, Selena secured as much as she could onto her own horse from the packs Chenoa had carried. “It’s not everything, but it’ll make Sparky’s load lighter. At least the packs don’t sit near his wounds.”

“Roni,” David said as he walked over to them. “We’ll meet you on the main trail.”

She watched amused as he pulled Selena into a hug. “Selena, thanks for talking me off the ledge while we searched for Cody.” He stabbed his foot into the small pebbles. “I was starting to get a little frantic.”

“Don’t mention it, David. You guys take care. Maybe we’ll see you on the trails again sometime.”

Cody had already mounted his pony. “Bye, Selena. Don’t worry. We’ll take care of Roni.”

David hoisted himself into the saddle and with a wave they headed downstream to find the trail.

Roni waited until they were out of sight and took Selena into her arms. “That was very nice of them.” She kissed Selena and instantly felt the hot pull between her legs.

Selena must have felt it too, as she broke the kiss and put her hand on Roni’s chest. “Don’t be getting me all hot for you and then ride off into the sunset.” She looked downstream. “Do you think David knows?”

“Oh crap! I’ll bet it was them that pulled into the rec site parking lot when we were there.”

Selena laughed. “You’re probably right. Oh, it’s going to be an interesting ride for you, my love.” She put her foot in the stirrup and mounted the horse. She reached down and brushed Roni’s cheek with the back of her hand. “We better get moving.” She shrugged out of Puller’s vest and handed it to her. “He’ll want to stay with you now.”

They rode down to the trail and parted ways. Roni looked over her shoulder a couple times until Selena disappeared into the woods. Her heart tugged as she watched the woman she’d fallen so hard for, ride away.

Sparky didn’t seem too encumbered by his injuries. In fact, she believed moving helped him. She was somewhat worried about how the trailer ride would affect him. They’d cross that bridge when they came to it.

Cody kept her entertained with stories of birding and his frequent excursions on Cinnamon. His nonstop chatter gave David only a few opportunities to ask about her family and the ranch. By the time they reached the rec sites, her head was pounding double time.

Sparky and Chenoa loaded quietly into the trailer behind Cinnamon and David’s horse. The rig was indeed the one that’d pulled in while she and Selena were making out. David programmed the ranch’s address into his GPS, turned the rig around, and they were quickly on their way. Puller lay nestled on her lap.

She found she could still participate in conversation as long as she kept her eyes closed. Sleep, however, would be impossible as Cody chattered incessantly. She didn’t hold it against him though. As a matter of fact, in the hours since she’d met him, she’d grown quite fond of the boy. And that surprised her. She wasn’t used to being around kids. They were rare on the ranch, so usually the only contact she had with them was when she had to rescue one. Sort of like today, she pondered. She pulled her hat down over her eyes, relaxed, and dozed.

“. . . Joyce and Aunt Kathy would like Roni and Selena, don’t you think, Dad?”

Half-asleep, she only caught the tail end of his question. She kept her eyes closed and forced herself not to stir or turn her head in curiosity.

“I think they probably would. Maybe someday we can introduce them,” David said.

“Do you think Roni and Selena live together like Aunt Joyce and Aunt Kathy?”

She opened her eyes in surprise but didn’t dare move a muscle. She stole a sideways glance at David who, unbeknownst to Cody, winked at her. He nodded and smiled before returning his eyes to the road. She closed her eyes again and relaxed.

“Roni told me she trains horses. Maybe when I’m big she’ll train one for me.” Cody bounced in his seat. She bit the inside of her cheek to keep from smiling.

“If that red horse is any indication, I wouldn’t mind that a bit.”

“I know. Sparky is awesome. You should’ve seen him fighting that cat.”

She heard the truck’s blinker click on and felt the rig turn. The sound of gravel under the tires switched to a low hum. It’d be exactly an hour and fifteen minutes until they arrived at her dad’s ranch.

“I thought you were hiding in the log. Isn’t that what Roni told you to do?”

“Yeah, but when I heard Sparky scream I had to look. He kept rearing up and striking it even after it was dead. Then he went and stood by Roni.”

“That shows he has real respect for her. You only get one horse like that in a lifetime. Roni’s pretty lucky.”

She heard Cody sigh. “Cinnamon bucked me off. I guess she don’t respect me.”

“Doesn’t respect you. Well, maybe that’s something you can work on with Roni. Of course you’ll have to ask her. We don’t live too far from her ranch.”

“How far?”

“It looks like only fifty miles or so. You’ll have to talk to her about that when we get there. Better let her sleep though. She’s been through a lot rescuing your little butt, mister.”

Cody giggled and rested his head against her shoulder. She let a smile grow on her lips and then fell asleep.