His warning yell was lost in the scream of the saw blade in the mill house and the commands and shouts from the men in the yard.
He ran toward her on leaden legs, watching with sickening dread as a log kicked out from the pile behind her, pivoted ninety degrees and struck the hindquarters of her mare.
The unexpected assault made Star lunge forward and bolt into a panicked run.
The violent lurch unseated Rebecca and tumbled her backward. She instinctively splayed her arms wide and then down, as if to catch her body from falling, but there was only air and an angry tangle of wood beneath her. Rebecca’s head hit the pile first—hard—and then there came no more flailing of her limbs, but a loosening of her body, as if she’d become a ragdoll dropped to the dust.
Icy fear streamed through Adam as he raced toward her inert body, his only thought to pull her off the shifting timbers.
He and Boyd reached her at the same moment, the two of them sweeping her off the timber pile. Adam lifted her into his arms and carried her away from the rolling, bouncing logs.
Boyd released a long, shrill whistle that raised the hair on Adam’s arms and caught the attention of every man in the yard. A collective shout filled the mill, but not a word left Adam’s throat as he watched the timber pile collapse. Logs bounced and rolled across the sawdust and bark-littered ground as he and Boyd moved Rebecca farther away.
A bell clanged loudly, echoing through the yard, warning the mill crew of an accident, of danger, to stop what they were doing. Within seconds the mill was nearly silent. Only the saw in the mill building made one final screaming pass before it, too, was silenced. Time seemed fluid and slow as Adam stood with Rebecca draped over his arms, her blood soaking the left shoulder and sleeve of his work shirt.
Adam watched his father leap a pile of slab wood and land beside them. Eyes intense and focused, assessing the situation like the lawman he used to be, Duke waved for Cyrus Darling, who was manning the lumber wagon, to bring it around quickly.
As Cyrus turned the wagon in their direction, Radford raced into their midst, his eyes wide as if expecting an attack from an unseen enemy. “What happened?” he asked. As his gaze fell on Rebecca draped across Adam’s trembling arms, he seemed to shrink a foot. The color drained from his face as if leached from the earth beneath his leather boots. “Dear God, no,” he whispered, reaching for his daughter, his voice quaking. He cupped her beautiful face and called her name.
Rebecca didn’t respond.
“What happened?” Radford asked, his dumbstruck expression telling Adam that he didn’t realize he’d caused his daughter’s accident.
“She was unseated and fell off her horse,” Adam said, knowing he needed to protect Radford from the truth.
Boyd raised his eyebrows, but he didn’t elaborate as to why she’d been unseated.
Radford shifted his horror-filled gaze from his blood-covered fingers to Adam’s face. “What is she doing here?”
Sick with fear, Adam could barely get the words out. “She was bringing our lunch.”
Suddenly, time seemed to explode and everything happened at once. Rebecca’s mare raced by, eyes wild as Boyd snagged one of the trailing reins to its bridle.
“Whoa, girl, easy now,” Boyd said, as he ran alongside the horse, gently slowing the frightened creature and bringing her to a prancing stop. “I’ll find Doc Milton and bring him to the house.” With that, he launched himself onto the mare’s back and raced out of the mill.
Cyrus halted the wagon beside them.
Adam didn’t wait for assistance. With Rebecca in his arms, he planted his right foot on a log that was waiting to be debarked, anchored his left foot on a metal sideboard rail, and heaved himself onto the seat.
As Cyrus clucked to the thick-bodied Percherons, Radford and Duke leapt onto the wagon bed and leaned over the back of the crude wooden seat. They checked Rebecca’s head wound, which was bleeding at a frightening rate.
Radford retrieved a clean handkerchief from his shirt pocket and cupped it behind his daughter’s head. When her blood ran in rivulets over his fingers and wrist, he increased the pressure on her wound and pleaded with her to open her eyes.
Adam said nothing because he knew Rebecca was unable to respond. He could feel it in the weight of her body. He’d known she was injured the instant the back of her head slammed against the oak log that she had landed upon. He said nothing because he couldn’t bear to tell anyone what he already knew—Rebecca’s injury was life-threatening.
Radford shook his head, his eyes filled with fear and disbelief. “Adam, why would you have her come to the mill in the middle of our day? You can’t have forgotten how dangerous it is in the yard?”
He hadn’t forgotten, and he hadn’t asked her to come to the mill, but he had been selfish and short sighted in accepting her offer to bring him lunch. He said nothing, though, knowing his words and explanation would make no difference.
He had never imagined Rebecca in his arms like this, so injured, so lifeless, and that it would be because of him.
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About the Author
New York Times & USA Today Bestselling Author Wendy Lindstrom is known for the riveting emotional power of her work. Romantic Times has dubbed her “one of romance’s finest writers,” and readers rave about her enthralling characters and “masterfully crafted” stories. She is the creator of the “original Grayson Brothers” series that begins with RITA award-winner Shades of Honor. This critically acclaimed series is available in ebook, paperback editions, and audiobooks.
Professionally produced in audiobook format, her Grayson Brothers series captivates listeners and is fast becoming an audiobook 5-star favorite. Get the audiobook edition of Shades of Honor. The Grayson Brothers series is also available in audiobooks.
This novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any
resemblance to actual events, locales, business establishments, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Victorian, Sweet, Historical Romance – American Setting
EBook copyright 2015 Wendy Lindstrom
EBook published by Rustic Studio Publishing
ISBN: 9781939263193
Cover design by The Killion Group, Inc.
EBook design by Rustic Studio Publishing
All rights reserved. With the exception of quotes used in reviews, this book may not be reproduced or used in whole or in part by any means whatsoever without written permission from the author.
Even with many layers of editing, mistakes can slip through. If you encounter typos or errors in this book, please send them to Wendy Lindstrom at http://www.wendylindstrom.com/contact/.
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