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Allie wiggled against her pillow, wishing it wasn’t so unbearably hot. She tried flipping it over but it was oddly shaped: heavy and inflexible. Her eyes shot open, staring up at the fading blue of the sky even as she remembered she was lying beside the river. With Carter. Surprisingly, her gyrations hadn’t woken him.
She sat up and peeked at his bandage, relieved that even though it was sprinkled with red there hadn’t been a hemorrhage of blood. And he was sleeping peacefully. They could handle a day or two of this, no problem, especially if she could trap some fish. Actually it would be rather nice to catch up on some sleep, and talk with Carter about normal things.
But when she pressed the back of her hand against his forehead, her good spirits plummeted. He was hot, burning hot, his body blasting heat like a furnace. No wonder she’d woken.
“Carter,” she whispered. He didn’t answer. Didn’t move. He probably needed his sleep. Beside, a fever wasn’t so bad. Just the body’s way of fighting bacteria. On the other hand, she’d heard horrifying stories of strep and staph infections.
She took a fortifying breath and eased back toward his shoulder, gingerly checking the skin around the bandage. At first glance the color seemed normal—except for several telltale dots of red.
Oh, God. She choked back a groan and for a second quit breathing. Then she shook him, calling his name, praying he’d open his eyes and give her that slow deep smile.
But he was unresponsive.
She glanced upriver. There was still a chance of water traffic. Not so much now since the day was ending, but someone might come along. They had to. He needed antibiotics, a doctor and a hospital. And he needed them quickly.
She clasped her arms around her knees, rocking back and forth, feeling stuck and helpless. So many times she’d huddled like this, waiting for her mother to come home before one of the creepy boyfriends found her. Only this was much worse.
Tears blurred her vision. Because of her, he was in grave danger. Twice now, he’d saved her life. Had he suspected this would happen? Earlier he’d pumped her up, talking about how she was capable of waiting here alone, for days if necessary. As if he knew a rescue wouldn’t be quick. But she couldn’t just sit and watch as infection took over his body.
This side of the river might be riddled with chasms but it also led to the bridge. So what if there were a few rocks and mountain lions. She had a perfectly good lariat and she’d already hiked over some fairly rough terrain. She was so scared and desperate she could probably screech loud enough to scare off any predator.
She twisted to her knees, pressing her lips close to Carter’s ear. “I’m going for help,” she said. She gave him a gentle shake, watching his eyes for the smallest flicker of movement. A simple acknowledgement. But there was nothing.
“Don’t worry.” She swallowed the lump that clogged her throat, hating that he might wake up and think she’d deserted him. “I’ll run as fast I can. I promise. I love you.”
She rose slowly, regretfully, wishing she could leave him food, a blanket. But their only possession was his lariat, and she would need that. Kate had spoken about a huge crevice on the western side of the Mustang River. How it was effective for separating the wildlife refuge from hikers. Hopefully it wasn’t too wide or deep, but no matter. Because if that was what separated her from his rescuers, she was determined to cross it.
