by Becky McGraw
"Yeah a couple of them in my barn, why?" Cole asked then sat in the chair in front of Gabe's desk.
"No time to sit, we need to go get them then get to Denton. She's running in the woods, and they think she's hiding because she's scared. They're out looking for her, but haven't found her."
Cole stood up and told him, "The Double B is closer than my place, I know Luke has a couple there too, we'll stop there instead."
When they pulled up to the trailer, Gabe swallowed down the emotions that surged up inside of him. Karlie could have died here, if the Texas Rangers hadn't caught Jake Johnson. He got out and waded through the police there and found the person in charge and identified himself, then told him he and Cole wanted to help search for her. The man went over the search map and showed him where they had searched, and what was left, then handed him two radios.
Gabe thanked him then walked behind the trailer and an involuntary grin spread across his face when he saw the hole that looked like someone had blasted it out with a shotgun from the inside. An old flowered comforter covered the raw edges, and he didn't see any blood, so that gave him a measure of comfort.
What wasn't comforting was the thought of her out in the woods, scared to death and running from the people trying to save her. They had a few hours left before sunset, and he wanted to find her before it got dark. The thought of her out there alone in the woods at night caused his gut to churn and his heart to twist in his chest.
Gabe jogged back over to the truck, and motioned Cole to help him unload the three-wheelers they'd picked up at the Double B. They were older, but they'd get the job done. He and Cole had stopped to fill them up at a gas station, before they got here, and they'd also strapped rifles across the handle bars, and put a saddle bag with a first aid kit on one, just in case.
Once they offloaded them down the ramp, Gabe straddled his and cranked it up and waited for Cole to do the same, then they took off into the woods in the direction of the river. It was probably three miles from the trailer, and according to the commander was where the search stopped. Maybe she'd gotten to the other side somehow and that's why they hadn't found her yet, he thought. The commander said they had six men out searching, and it looked like they'd been pretty thorough from what Gabe saw, so that could be the only explanation that he could think of as to why they hadn't found her yet...unless she was hiding.
Every once in a while, Gabe would stop and yell her name, hoping that would draw her out if she was hiding. It slowed them down getting to the river, but he thought it was worth the time lost to make sure. When they finally reached the river, it wasn't what Gabe expected, it was a freaking cliff that was forty feet in the air, and the little stream that they'd been riding along emptied down into it like a waterfall. His heart fell and he groaned.
There was no way she would have jumped in there, even if she was scared. He scanned the cliff with his eyes looking for any place she might be hiding there, and he didn't see anything. He turned and drove along the cliff scanning the opposite bank, and Cole was right behind him. Although he was almost hoarse now, Gabe yelled her name over and over again, hoping she would be able to hear it over the engines.
Gabe's eyes snagged on something that moved in the undergrowth on the opposite bank and he stopped, then let out a whoop when he recognized Sarge. His excitement quickly faded though, because he knew Karlie wouldn't have let him loose, unless she wasn't able to keep him with her.
"They're on the other side, Cole...I'm jumping in and going find her." An unwelcome thought occurred to him, and he swallowed the terror that came along with it. He hoped she hadn't jumped in and drowned.
A painful groan escaped Gabe and Cole looked at him with concern. "Your arm hurting?" he asked.
"No, it's fine...but I hope she didn't..." He couldn't even finish the sentence he was so choked with fear.
"Don't even think it...she made it," Cole told him fervently. "You shouldn't be going in that water with your arm like it is...I'll go."
"No! I'm going! You look along the bank on the other side and see if you see anything...I'll let you know if I find anything...hopefully these radios are waterproof."
"You're a stubborn ass, you know that?" Cole said with a chuckle, then added, "They aren't waterproof, but I have a baggie in the saddle bag," Cole told him then reached inside and handed him one.
Gabe put the radio into the baggie then sealed it and put it in his pocket, before he took off his boots. Walking along the ledge he looked for any place that would let him get closer to the water than up here, and he finally found a section that had a couple of outcroppings that would let him get down a little closer to the water.
He slid down on his butt then stepped down and did it again, until he was fifteen feet or so closer. Taking a deep breath he jumped out from the rocks and waited for the impact, hoping the water was deep enough here and he didn't wind up breaking his legs or neck. He hit the water then went down to the bottom and pushed up, after he unsuctioned his feet from the muddy bottom, then swam to the surface, and then toward the shore, where he saw Sarge jumping up and down, barking excitedly.
With every stroke he made through the water, the bandage on his arm got heavier and heavier, until finally he stopped and treaded water until he could rip it off and let it float away. The water made his arm hurt, but he didn't give a damn. He was going to find Karlie...and if Sarge was over here, she was too.
When he dragged himself out of the water, tiredness sapped him and he knelt there a moment catching his breath, and Sarge came up to him and licked him, then barked and danced. He looked into the dog's eyes and he could swear he was saying 'follow me'.
Gabe figured he must be hallucinating from the snake bite and the pain medication, but he shoved up to his feet anyway, and then followed behind Sarge who darted into the woods. Gabe started yelling her name as he followed behind Sarge who would run a little bit then come back to make sure he was behind him, before heading farther.
Finally, Sarge stopped and was licking on something under some brush and leaves, digging with his paws, and Gabe's heart stopped, when he saw blue jean material appear against the brown scrub. Oh, God, please don't let her be dead, he prayed, then ran over there and dropped to his knees, and with a sob started moving brush aside. He moved upward and uncovered her hair then her face and he howled when he saw her beautiful face was black and blue. Her jaw was swollen and bruised and one of her eyes was black.
His voice echoed off the trees and through the woods. He was going to kill that bastard, Gabe thought and pulled Karlie out and onto his lap, holding her tight against him and rocking her. He felt hot tears sliding down his cheeks as his hand hovered over her throat, almost dreading feeling for a pulse. Gabe placed his trembling fingers on her neck and sobbed with relief when he felt a slow and steady pulse there. He pulled her against him and put kisses all over her face then finally kissed her lips and pleaded brokenly, "Please wake up and talk to me, baby...please."
Karlie's body jerked then she opened her frightened eyes and pinned them to his. When recognition hit her, she started wailing and put her arms around his neck, then said between sobs, "Oh, god Gabe, I was so scared, but so exhausted I couldn't go anymore..."
"You did good, baby...you're safe now...they caught him," he told her and held her tighter when her body started trembling violently. "Shh, it's okay, sugar..."
She sniffed then swiped at her tears with the back of her hand and told him, "Thank you for finding me."
"The Texas Rangers have been out here on ATVs looking for you for hours," he told her. "I just got lucky, because I saw Sarge."
She gave him a watery chuckle then said, "I was hiding, because I thought it was Jake trying to find me. I told Sarge to stay put, when I covered myself up to take a nap...I'm glad he didn't listen."
Gabe pulled back from her a second and pulled the baggie out of his pocket then took out the radio and ann
ounced with a whoop, "I found her! She's tired, but okay!"
Loud clapping and yelling sounded over the radio, then Cole piped in, "I'll drive the truck around and come get ya'll."
Karlie sat up and looked at his arm, "Oh, Lord, you should be in the hospital! I can't believe you're out here, and you jumped in the river!"
"When I found out he took you, there was no way in hell they were going to keep me there...I checked myself out. I had your phone and the lawyer Jake made you call needed to tell you something and called back on your phone."
"Wow, that was just lucky, huh?" she said with astonishment.
"Yeah, damned lucky. You didn't have your phone, which I felt guilty about, but that lawyer gave me all the information I needed to help find you. Jake's probation officer was the key to us finding you."
Her face paled and her lips trembled as she repeated, "Probation officer?"
"Yeah, he had a pretty extensive record, and he was on probation for assault. He missed a contact with the probation officer, so there was a warrant out for him. Once he heard about the kidnapping and stuff, he pulled out all the stops to find him...and you."
Gabe heard Cole's truck pulling near the edge of the trees, and helped her stand up. "I'd carry you, baby, but my arm..." he felt blood rushing to his face as he apologized.
"I can walk, sugar...you're the one that should be carried. We're going back to the hospital, and you're checking yourself back in. You don't look so good," she told him seriously, then tiptoed to kiss his cheek.
Gabe grabbed her chin. "You're the one that looks like file miles of bad road, darlin'," he told her then anger poured through him and he gritted his teeth. "I want to pulverize that bastard for doing this to you."
"Sounds like he's in enough trouble, don't let him take you with him. The cops will give him what he deserves," she told him seriously, then added, "And I might not look very good, but I'm fine...now."
Holding her elbow, Gabe helped Karlie walk through the woods with him, and then out into the clearing to the SUV. Cole came over and picked her up in his arms and she smiled back at Gabe, "What is it with you Bowie men and carrying around women?"
"We just want to impress you with our strength, sugar," Cole told her then kissed the top of her head, which made Gabe growl. "I told the Rangers, you'd give them a statement after you were examined at the hospital, is that okay?" Cole asked her.
"I don't need to go to the hospital," she told them then clarified, "What I need is a shower, something to eat, and about forty-eight hours of uninterrupted sleep," she flinched and put her hand to her face, as Cole helped her into the SUV, "And maybe an ice pack for my face."
"Cole do you mind if we go to the lake house to recuperate?" Gabe asked him, as he slid into the passenger seat and buckled up. They needed to be somewhere neutral, where they could relax, and the rattlesnake memory at the cabin wasn't conducive to relaxation, in his opinion. They had a lot to talk about, when they weren't delirious.
Cole looked over at him and grinned, "Sounds like a great idea," he told him then pulled his keys out of the ignition and slid a key off the ring, then handed it to him. "Buy groceries before you go, the pantry is empty. Everything else should be stocked from the last time I took Bri out there," he told them. Gabe knew from talking to Sabrina the last time they'd been there had been when he proposed to her. His throat closed and his heart rate ramped up just thinking about it.
He needed to make an appointment with that therapist to talk about his mother and his aversion to marriage, without Karlie there. Maybe he had some magic hypnosis cure for that too. He'd sort of battled his commitment phobia, and won to a partial degree, but he wanted to conquer it, so he could have a normal life. If he didn't, his mother wouldn't have only ruined his father's life...and Gabe wasn't willing to let her do that to him.
In his mind, Gabe knew that Karlie wasn't anything like his mother. Although she had a habit of running when things got tough, it wasn't because she was bored and itchy to find greener pastures. Karlie ran to protect those she loved, because she thought any trouble that came down the pike was all her fault.
That was what she needed to work on...her self-confidence. It didn't take a therapist to figure out what her problem was. After she told him about how her parents had dumped her and her sister on their uncle, and told him they were too much trouble, he could see that little girl was still inside of her trying not to cause trouble to those she loved, for fear they'd dump her too.
Whatever the reason she did it though, it would take him some time to trust her not to run out on him, if she got scared. Them living together would give him that time...and he would have a commitment with her stronger than just dating. Gabe didn't want to lose her, he knew that for sure, and he had a feeling if he didn't address his issue, that is what was going to happen. Karlie was the kind of woman that wanted and deserved happily ever after. He wanted to be the man to give that to her...eventually.
***
Karlie was kind of worried about Gabe, he'd been so quiet the whole ride to the Double B, where they'd dropped off Sarge to Cassie who insisted she would take care of him while they were at the lake. After Karlie packed some clothes, they drove her newly repaired car to his cabin, so he could get some clothes. She went with him inside, watching the floor carefully as they walked, and Gabe had used a baseball bat to probe the closet, before reaching inside for his tennis shoes this time. The bag filled with his clothes was still on the dresser, so it was a quick stop, before they headed out to the lake house.
Gabe had gotten the first aid kit from the house too so she could redress his wound, and they stopped at the pharmacy right before it closed to get his prescriptions filled, then they went in the Piggly Wiggly and bought some groceries.
All of it felt so domestic, it made Karlie want to smile. When she was living with Jake, he didn't do any of this stuff with her, he expected her to do it all, and got mad when it wasn't done. Shaking her head, she pushed thoughts of her disgusting ex to the back of her mind. Gabe was not like him, she reminded herself. He wasn't controlling or abusive, he was just a sweet sexy man, and she loved him.
Maybe if she told herself that enough, she'd eventually get over the fear that clawed in her gut whenever he mentioned her moving in with him. Cole had suggested she talk to Cassie, and she planned on doing that, as soon as she had the chance. Cassie was really busy though, and now Karlie was going to the lake house with Gabe, leaving her to worry about the ranch again. Guilt poured through her and she chewed her lip wondering if she shouldn't have just stayed at the ranch.
"I hope Cassie is okay this week, she's getting really close to her due date, and she shouldn't be worrying or working."
Gabe looked over at her, "Don't worry about that, Luke will make sure she stays off her feet and doesn't overdo it. Wade can handle it, he can get one of the hands to help him with the horses, while you're gone."
"I just feel bad, it seems like I'm always running out on her, or causing her trouble," she told him.
"Not your fault, honey. You didn't ask a crazy lunatic to kidnap you and bang you around...and you didn't ask him to do all the things he did to any of us. Things will settle down now that he's in custody."
Karlie huffed out a breath and said, "I sure hope so...I just want some peace for a change. I feel like I've been on a runaway train for the last four months."
Gabe pulled up in front of the lake house and parked, and stared out into the darkness of the night, before he turned and took her shoulders in his hands, and asked, "You remember when you told me that I wasn't responsible for the world's problems?"
Karlie nodded, then Gabe told her earnestly, "Well, you were right--and you aren't responsible for the world's troubles. As soon as you accept that fact, you'll find your peace...and I'll find mine, because I won't be afraid you're going to run out on me when you get to blaming yourself, or trying to protect the world."
Karlie's eyes welled up as a swirl of emotions ran through her and lodged in her throat. Looking deep into his blue eyes she told him, "I've been running a long time, and blaming myself for our parents dumping us. You're right too, it's time I stopped that. They dumped us because they were bad parents, not because we were bad kids."
When the first tear tracked down her cheek, Gabe wiped it away with his thumb, but it was no use, because it was followed by many more that she couldn't stop, and then he went on to tell her, "You're not the 'wild child' honey, those people have it wrong. You're a wonderful, caring person who blames herself for other people's shortcomings, and tries to fix everything around her, so those people don't have to face that. Let them fix their own issues, and you take care of you. You deserve to be happy, darlin'."
Gabe pulled her into his arms and held her tightly, while she poured out all the acid that she'd kept inside of her for all these years, acid that had almost burned up her soul, if not for this wonderful man. In a trembling whisper, she said, "I love you, Gabe Kelly...so damned much."
