CHAPTER NINE

The sun had just begun to creep over the trees when Niki woke. It took her a moment to remember where she was and what had happened. Her bones were stiff from the chill of sleeping on the ground under the stars with only one small blanket and a minute amount of heat from a sleeping dog and a dying fire. She stared at her grandfather until she was sure he was breathing before slipping out from underneath the blanket she had shared with him throughout the cold night.

After she saddled Storm, she returned to her grandfather and knelt down next to him. Niki placed the back of her hand to his forehead. He was warm, but didn’t appear to have a fever. She wasn’t sure how long it took to get an infection, but he apparently didn’t have one yet. Niki touched the bandages she had used to cover the cuts on his head and bit back her tears. His color was so poor and his breathing so shallow that Niki hated to leave him alone, but she had to go for help. Even if she wasn’t worried about moving him, she couldn’t do it alone.

Niki took her grandfather’s rough leathery hand in hers and brought it to her cheek. His eyes fluttered open and he tried to smile. She was surprised by how relieved she felt to see him awake. She ran his palm down the side of her face and then kissed it before tucking his hand back underneath the blanket for warmth.

“Papa, I have to go for help now.”

He didn’t argue, which only intensified her fear, but she forced herself to project a calm and confident front. She tipped the canteen to his lips and he drank, then she fed him a crumbled piece of the previous morning’s coffee cake.

“There’s more coffee cake in this bag along with some beef jerky and here’s the canteen. I’ll hurry, but you might try to ration a little since that’s all I brought with me last night. Keep this within reach,” she said as she pressed her small pistol into his hand, praying he wouldn’t need it.

She doubted the gun would be much good for anything more out here than to call for help or hopefully scare something away. If her grandfather had to protect himself from a large predator such as a bear, the pistol would be pretty much useless. It broke her heart to see him look so helpless and it terrified her to leave him alone, unable to move or take care of himself, but there really was no other choice.

“I’d like to leave you the rifle, but I doubt you could shoot it in your position anyway.”

He tried to speak, but a cough racked his chest, forcing his eyes shut and a painful grimace to his face. Niki feared the night on the cold hard ground had made her grandfather’s problems even worse and leaving him in a prone position wouldn’t help his situation either, but she had to go now. There was no time to wait and see if he had worsened throughout the night or to try and scoot him up to a sitting position. If he had a serious spine injury, moving him even a little could cause permanent damage and pneumonia could be as deadly as a host of broken bones if not treated quickly. Either could very well claim his life if she didn’t find help soon.

“Don’t talk or try to move, Papa, just rest, keep hydrated and eat something every now and then to keep up your strength. I’ll be back as soon as I can with help. Fire the pistol if you need me. If I’m within hearing distance, I’ll come back. You’ve got six rounds.”

He nodded his head and the effort the action took made Niki realize time was of the essence.

“Take good care of him and stay close,” she ordered Gracie.

She patted the dog’s head, tucked the blanket tightly around her grandfather’s hips and shoulders, kissed his cheek and then forced herself to walk away. Niki summoned the courage to place the toe of her boot into the stirrup and hoisted herself into the saddle, while every instinct screamed at her to return to her grandfather. She pushed the thoughts back and put her heels to Storm’s sides. The anxious and rested gelding bolted out of the trees, leaving her grandfather and his braying mule quickly behind.

Niki was terrified for her grandfather’s survival, but she forced herself to hold Storm to a gallop, intermixed with walking, especially in rough terrain, to avoid tiring the horse. They had a long way to go for help and letting him run full out this early in the trip would not be a good idea. He was strong, but not only did she need him to keep a fast pace out of the mountains, she would probably have to use him to lead someone back to her grandfather unless she could get a helicopter to fly in and evacuate him.

She figured she was probably still about five hours from the ranch, but only about three or four from the control tower. Deuce had been cautious about the soldiers and had clearly wanted her as far away from them as possible, but they were military, sworn to serve and protect. She wasn’t sure how long her grandfather could survive without medical help and his well-being was her first priority. She had to trust the soldiers would help her.

“They’d better help us, since I’d bet it was their helicopter that caused Sally to buck,” she grumbled as Storm leapt over a small downed tree so smoothly she barely noticed his hooves leaving the ground.

The morning slowly began to warm, drying the dew from the grass. The bright sun felt good on Niki’s exposed cheeks and fingers as she rode, following landmarks she was sure would take her to the tower and would also help her find her grandfather again once she located help. Late summer mornings and nights could be cold in the high country, but for a while longer, she could count on the day’s temperatures to be mild and pleasant. The aspens’ leaves had yet to show a trace of fall color and the birds made no indication of moving south. If it wasn’t for the fear her grandfather’s injuries could be life-threatening, it would be another beautiful ride through the mountains.

As she estimated, a little over three hours of swift riding brought her to the ridge opposite the control tower where she and Deuce had ridden just two days ago. She pulled Storm to a halt and gazed across the ravine, fighting the unsettling feeling the unnatural quiet created. She saw no sign of the helicopter or any people, but one Humvee and several dirt bikes remained parked in sight. She hadn’t remembered noticing the dirt bikes when they last rode by and it struck her as odd.

Warning bells were going off in her head, but she could also see the pained look on her grandfather’s face clear as day. She nudged Storm and he slowly started down the steep embankment of the ravine, swaying and sliding on the loose stones. She gave him his head, leaned back and let him choose his own way down the steep rocky slope. At the bottom, she let him drink briefly at the creek and rest for a few minutes before urging him on.

The sure-footed horse cautiously picked his way across the clear stream. The ribbon of water was only about fifteen feet wide and several feet deep, but she could feel Storm’s footing slip on the slick, mossy rocks hidden below the water’s surface.

Once free of the creek, Storm started up the other side of the ravine. Niki could feel the power of the horse as his muscles rippled with each determined lunge up the near-vertical embankment. They rode a zig-zag pattern across the slope as it was too steep to ride straight up. Rocks and dirt rolled back toward the creek with each purposeful movement.

They crested the ridge and Niki looked around, eyes squinted against the bright glare of sun. It was too quiet and didn’t feel right, but she needed help. Just as she opened her mouth to call out, she spotted a boot sticking out from behind the Humvee. She rode over and gasped as she realized the boot was attached to a body, laying face down. The man’s U.S. military uniform was stained red from numerous bullet holes¾he was clearly dead.

Niki slapped a hand over her mouth to stifle the scream threatening to escape as Storm snorted and shied way from the body. She nearly fell out of the saddle as the big horse crow-hopped and fought for his head, clearly wanting to flee the stench of death. Niki grabbed the saddle horn and righted herself as Storm backed up at a dizzying speed.

The sound of a man’s voice made Niki’s head whip around as she tried to bring Storm under control. The man was not speaking English and the insignia on his uniform did not belong to the United States military, nor did the uniform sport a maple leaf such as the one she had seen on the helicopter the previous day. Thoughts swirled through her head, making no sense at all, but the one thing she was certain of was that she was in deep trouble.

Niki reined Storm around, now surrounded by five more men. Her body went rigid as the horse’s legs suddenly stiffened. Storm snorted at the closest man and then pawed angrily at the ground.

The men began advancing, smiling and laughing. Niki couldn’t understand what they were saying, but as she spied two more dead bodies on the ground, she felt certain they had no intention of helping her.

Her eyes darted from man to man. She scanned the area and noted that she was still very close to the edge of the ravine. Niki could feel the big horse quiver beneath her and tense, ready to spring at the slightest provocation. She gripped Storm’s sides with her legs and grasped the saddle horn.

One man pulled a pistol out of its holster. She doubted he intended to shoot her yet¾instant death would be too quick, easy and preferable. Niki feared he planned to take out her only mode of escape. She couldn’t allow her beloved horse to be shot at point blank range, but most importantly, she couldn’t be delayed too long or she doubted her grandfather would survive. With a prayer and a swift kick, Niki informed Storm it was time to run for their lives.

The horse sensed the danger and cleared the edge of the ravine before the men could react. Niki held on as tight as she could and leaned back to help the horse keep his balance as he lunged down the slope. Rocks dislodged under the fury of his churning hooves as he barreled down the embankment.

They had nearly reached the creek when the first series of shots rang out. Storm shied and turned to follow the creek downstream rather than plunging into the water with its slick bottom at an uncontrolled speed. Another barrage of gunfire pelted the ground, narrowly missing Niki, but hitting nearby rocks, spraying the horse with sharp stone fragments.

A slight bend in the ravine took them out of sight of the shooters and soon the slope was much less intimidating, making it easier for Storm to cross the creek and climb out of the ravine. Niki released a sigh of relief and encouraged the horse to take it easy as he began his ascent. They had just reached the top when Niki heard the unmistakable sound of two dirt bikes’ engines firing up.

“I hope you have a little more left,” she whispered as she leaned over Storm’s neck, flattening herself against his steaming body.

Her position was all the encouragement the horse needed. Storm stretched out to a full run. His speed and endurance amazed her, but she knew they needed to reach the cover of the thick forest on the other side of the clearing as quickly as possible. Storm had already been galloping for hours before they had even reached the tower, so she doubted he would be able to outrun the dirt bikes for long or dodge the bullets that would come once the soldiers reached the flat meadow.

Niki stole a glance back. The bikes had cleared the ravine’s lip and were rapidly closing in. She looked ahead and estimated they were still a quarter of a mile from a dense stand of trees. Several bullets landed well to the right of Niki, doing no damage, but the noise spurred another burst of speed from the gelding. She fought the urge to look back again—it would serve no purpose. Instead, she kept herself low and her head down to help Storm as much as possible and to minimize the size of target her body presented.

The distance between her and the trees narrowed, but the bikes sounded closer. Another shot narrowly missed as Storm dove into the thin stand of pine. The horse slowed slightly, having to navigate through an old blow-down as if it were an obstacle course. She knew the fallen trees would slow the dirt bikes even more since they would have no choice but to find an alternate route around the jumble of timber, resembling a giant game of pick-up-sticks.

Niki remained low to the horse’s neck as he wove in and out of trees, branches slapping violently, threatening to dislodge her from Storm’s back. He stumbled several times as he maneuvered through the erratically strewn timber, but regained his footing and continued to run. She clung to the horn, hoping the horse knew what he was doing, doubting she still had the ability to think quickly or clearly enough to make a good decision, nor did she want to risk a look up for fear of being stabbed in the eye by a low-hanging branch.

Storm leapt over logs and wove his way around everything he couldn’t clear. His nose was stretched out as if reaching for the finish line at the Kentucky Derby. His breathing huffed above the pounding of his hooves and the breaking of branches and Niki hoped his strength and endurance would last until they were safely away from the armed men.

As the horse finally managed to put distance between them and the sound of the bikes, Niki took in a deep breath and slowly exhaled. The noise of the engines had all but faded when she dared her first glimpse up since entering the trees. The sight brought a gasp from her lips. The sheer drop off was the last thing she saw as Storm launched himself over the edge without hesitation.

Niki felt as if they were suspended in mid-air. She leaned back until her head nearly rested on Storm’s rump and prayed his feet would soon touch solid ground. The first contact with earth jolted her body, throwing her forward, jamming the horn into her stomach and forcing the air from her lungs, but she hung on.

The horse didn’t slow since any attempt to change momentum or direction would be impossible and would send them tumbling to their deaths. She knew the descent from the ledge had only taken seconds, but it felt as if they were moving in slow motion for an eternity. The horse’s hooves barely touched the ground as he fled down the slope. Nothing seemed real and the only sound she could hear was a faint ringing in her ears and the heavy labored breathing of the determined horse.

Her knuckles were white as she grasped the saddle horn with every ounce of strength she possessed. By the time Storm finally came to a stop at the bottom of the cliff, she wasn’t sure if she could let go without physically prying her fingers free. Her fingernails dug into her palm on the hand holding the leather reins so forcefully that blood trickled down her wrist, yet she didn’t feel the pain.

Niki took several deep breaths to steady her nerves and gently guided Storm around to look back at what they had just ridden down. Her eyes followed the impossibly steep, treeless, rock-strewn slope until her gaze rested on two men. They stood, stances wide, arms crossed, shaking their heads in disbelief. Niki glared at them for only a moment before reining Storm toward the trees and trotting out of their sight.