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In moments like this, I come to life.
~ Seth
“You want me to take the lead?” Seth called up to his brother as they neared the rocky base of another looming mountain.
This second day out from Elias’s place had brought them through rough terrain, maybe the hardest going yet. And the mountain ahead bore more rock than vegetation.
Lord, help us get up and over without event. He hated subjecting Rachel and Andy to the dangers of traveling through this country. They were both doing admirably so far, but they hadn’t reached the peak yet.
“Nah. I’ll take this one,” Samuel called over his shoulder as he leaned forward to give his horse freedom to climb the ascent.
Rachel held her horse back to put space between her and Samuel’s mount, then let the gelding move on. Andy did the same, and Seth held his breath as he watched the boy ascend. An excellent horseman already.
He nudged his gelding forward to follow them, keeping his eyes more on the animals ahead than his own path. Partway up the mountain, the hard-packed ground turned to loose stone, as though remnants of a rockslide covered their path.
Andy’s horse stumbled and fell hard on his knee.
“Pull his head up,” Seth yelled, his heart climbing into his throat.
Andy was already doing it, but the horse still struggled to get his feet on solid ground. Seth couldn’t see if the horse was down on both front knees or just one, but the boy had raised his reins high to hold the animal’s head up, pulling some of the weight off his front end so he could get his footing.
At last, the horse heaved upright, planting both front hooves on rocks underneath him. Uneven footing, but secure for the moment. The horse heaved, and Seth found himself doing the same.
“Are you all right, Andy?”
“Yeah.” The boy’s response was unsteady.
Seth’s own heart still surged in his chest. “I think we’d better walk the rest of the way up.”
Andy was off the horse before Seth could lean forward to dismount. As the boy landed, the loose rocks slid underneath him. He leaned forward and clutched the saddle, tugging the horse off balance.
“Whoa, there.” Seth hit the ground and scrambled toward the pair, leaving his horse where it stood.
Andy’s mare had regained her footing, and the two of them stood on tenuous ground. Seth slowed his movements as he neared them, but he couldn’t seem to ease his breathing, nor the speed of his racing heart.
“I got her.” The boy was breathing hard, too.
“I’ll lead her the rest of the way up. Hold my horse steady and I’ll come back for him.” Seth reached for the reins.
“I can do it.” Andy’s tone wasn’t obstinate, but determination locked his chin. He gazed up the rest of the slope. “I can do it.” This time he seemed to be confirming within himself.
Seth eyed the same incline, all the way up to the two horses and riders at the top.
“Are you hurt?” Rachel’s voice sounded from far above, echoing off the stone that spanned between them.
He cupped his hands around his mouth to call up to her. “No. All are well.” At least, he hoped the horse was.
Leaning forward to check the animal’s knees, he saw a gash on the right leg from the stones. Not a bad cut from the looks of it, but they could make sure once they were all on level ground.
Seth straightened and turned his gaze back to Andy. “You’ll go slow and stay well away from the mare’s hooves?”
“Yes, sir.” His face held more seriousness than Seth would have expected from a lad his age. He was accustomed to matters of danger. Hadn’t Rachel said the boy did most of the hunting? It seemed impossible for one so young, yet looking at the earnestness in his face now, not as unbelievable as before.
Seth blew out a breath and nodded. “Be careful. I’ll be right behind if you need anything.”
Boy and horse picked their way up the mountain, one laborious step at a time. But Seth didn’t mind the slowness. As long as they were safe. The lad took such care with his responsibility, Seth could see why Rachel entrusted him out alone with the rifle.
They finally arrived at the top, and Rachel reached for her son, wrapping an arm around him. “What happened?”
“Summer slipped in the rocks, so I had to lead her up. She’s all right now.” He let his mother embrace him, but it was easy to see the struggle inside him to be a man in his own right.
Rachel’s gaze lifted to Seth, and he met her searching eyes with a nod. “They’re both fine.”
The worried line of her shoulders eased, and she gave her son a final hug, then stepped back. “Well then.” She inhaled a breath that raised her chest. “I suppose now we have to go down the other side.”
Seth turned his focus to his brother. “Easier I hope?”
The line across Samuel’s brow didn’t bode well as he turned to look over his shoulder.
Seth pulled his gelding up to the top of the ridge to view what his brother saw. When he reached Samuel’s side and looked down, the sight almost made him swoon.
Not quite straight down, but they’d have to travel back and forth in switchbacks to keep from tumbling head over heels. Riding the horses wouldn’t be possible. They’d all be walking. “Are you sure this is the way down?”
Samuel raised the paper that held Elias’s sketch of the remainder of their journey, more detailed than the one Rachel had brought with her. “The line he said to travel seems to go down from here.”
Seth scanned the incline to the right, which turned into a steep drop. Then to the left, which looked much the same before meeting another mountainside rising upward.
This was the best of the available options, but so very treacherous. He let out a breath. “We lead the horses in zigzags?”
Samuel nodded. “Probably best for you and me to handle the animals, one at a time. Go down, then come back up for the other two.”
“I can lead my mare.” Andy’s voice sounded beside Seth, and he turned to find that same determined seriousness.
“That’s a pretty steep grade.” Samuel’s tone sounded clearly unconvinced.
“Andy, no.” Rachel’s voice was as desperate as Samuel’s was uncertain.
Seth studied the boy, who was taking the measure of the descent. Then Andy raised his gaze to meet Seth’s. “I can do it. I’ll stay right behind you, do everything you say.” Those eyes begged a chance. Begged trust.
Did he dare allow the opportunity? Andy might have as good a chance at getting down as he and Samuel did. “I tell you what. If your mother agrees, we’ll let Samuel go first, then you and I hike down with our horses, you staying right behind me.”
A smile bloomed across Andy’s face, and Seth raised a staying hand. “If”—he paused for effect—“your mother agrees.”
Andy turned that beseeching gaze on Rachel, who stood behind them with her horse—a safe distance away from this steeper side of the mountain.
“I don’t know.” She rolled her lips together, uncertainty tightening the lines of her face.
“I can do it, Ma.” Andy’s voice held a quiet conviction that reinforced Seth’s faith in his offer.
Rachel shifted her gaze to Seth. “Is it safe?”
He met her gaze. He had to be completely honest, even if she didn’t like what he said. “Nothing’s completely safe, but I think he’s capable if any of us can.”
She nodded, then turned her focus back to her son. “Make sure you do exactly what Seth and Samuel tell you.”
Andy gave a grave nod. “I will.”
“All right, then. We’ll see how Samuel manages the descent.” Seth looked to his brother.
Samuel returned a grimace. “I suppose that makes me the test.”
“I can go first if you prefer.” In truth, it shouldn’t be his younger brother who risked his life to see if it could be done. “I’ll go. Just keep Andy close.”
Samuel gave a firm shake of his head. “No. Let me go first. Once I’m down, you and Andy start.”
There was simply no good way to keep everyone safe. He’d have to trust his brother—and most of all, trust the One who could keep them from harm.
As Samuel and his gelding started down the incline at an angle, breathing came a little harder for Seth. Don’t let them be injured, Lord. Please.
A motion beside him barely registered until he realized it was Rachel, stepping forward to the place where Samuel had stood.
Her gasp was just loud enough to snag his focus. Her face had paled, and she seemed to sway.
He reached for her, but instead of grasping her arm, slipped his hand around her back. She eased closer, surely more for the stability he offered than any tenderness. But she stirred everything inside him—his need to protect her, his desire to love her.
With his arm tucked around her, they watched his brother descend. Twice the rocks slid from under Samuel’s feet, bouncing down the mountain until they reached the base far below. He could have fallen with them, but both times he was able to grasp a bit of the stone face to hold him. God’s hand alone kept the horse from slipping down to its death.
“He’s almost there.” Andy’s voice clogged with tension.
The words jarred Seth, making him realize just how hard he was gripping Rachel. Or maybe she was doing the clutching, because one of her hands covered his at her waist, squeezing hard enough to whiten her fingers.
Samuel was nearing the bottom, and soon he jumped the last stride, then turned to coax the gelding to leap down from the short ledge where he perched. At last, his brother turned his face upward and waved.
Seth breathed deeply to clear the knot in his gut. “I suppose it’s our turn.” He didn’t fear for himself, but that descent would be hard on Andy. And even harder on Rachel.
He turned his gaze to her honey-colored hair. The shimmer of the sun made the strands look so soft. His fingers itched to stroke it, but he didn’t dare.
She must have felt his gaze, for she looked up, meeting him with eyes so green his breath caught. He had to swallow to summon moisture to his mouth.
“Should I come down behind Andy?” The fear—the vulnerability—in her eyes speared him.
“No.” The word came out breathy, as though he’d already descended the mountain and climbed back up it. “I’ll return for you. Wait for me.”
She held his gaze another minute, possessing more than just his focus.
Then she looked away. Not down, but far out over the valley. Maybe even farther. “I’ll wait.”
The words seemed to cover more than simply this moment. This situation. He’d have to unpack them later.
For now, he had to get a boy and two horses down the mountain without injury. Then he’d come back to the woman waiting for him.
~ ~ ~
GOING DOWN THE MOUNTAIN took everything she had. And she may not have ever stepped off the edge of the cliff without having Seth’s hand to cling to. The trust she placed in this man should scare her more than the mountain, but she couldn’t bring herself to regret it. Seth had proved himself a good man. Maybe better than a good man.
As she slid her way down the final stretch, his grip stayed firm. And when her feet landed on flat ground, his hold was the only thing that kept her knees from buckling.
“You made it, Ma.” Andy’s grin seemed wider than his face. “That was fun, wasn’t it?”
A jerky laugh slipped out before she could stop it. The sarcastic kind, and probably more a release of nerves than anything. “I’d use a different word for the experience.”
When Seth gave her hand a gentle squeeze, she realized she was still holding his. Heat flamed to her face, and she slipped her grasp away and brushed tendrils of hair from her face.
“Anyone wanna eat a bite before we head on?” Samuel was searching through his pack, where they stowed most of the food.
“I do.” Andy was always ready to eat.
Her own stomach roiled at the thought of food, but the others needed sustenance. “I suppose it’s time.”
“I think I saw a little spring over there. The horses need water.” Samuel motioned to their left. It seemed he’d taken over the job of trail guide.
Walking the thirty or so strides on solid ground helped rid her body of the rest of its nerves, and she worked quickly to lay out food while the others watered the horses and themselves.
Summer in these mountains was so much cooler than it had been back in Missouri, but still the sun shone hot as it hovered over them. Finally, the others finished their meal and returned supplies to their packs.
As Rachel fastened the ties on her own, she heard Seth say to his brother, “I’m gonna step behind that rock, then I’ll be ready.”
She should probably do the same once he finished. The hours ahead would be long enough without an aching bladder.
A moment later, Seth shouted. As she turned toward the noise, Samuel grabbed his rifle from its scabbard and sprinted the direction his brother had gone.
Rachel’s pulse raced as she started toward them. What could have happened to him within seconds of disappearing behind the boulder?
“What is it?” Andy darted past her.
“Wait. Andy.” What if there was danger? A wild animal?
A gunshot ripped through the air, the boom echoing off cliff walls, reverberating through her head.
She gripped her temples as crimson flashed through her vision. Blood dripping from a hand. She squeezed her eyes shut, pushing the image back. Then she forced them open, focusing on the commotion around her.
Seth was coming out from behind the rock, one arm draped around his brother’s neck. Andy walked on his other side. Seth wasn’t putting weight on his left leg.
Raising her skirts, she ran toward them. “What happened?” Had the shot injured him or something else?
Samuel raised a grim look as she neared. “Bit by a rattlesnake.”
