On the Mountain

by Peggy Ann Craig

  “I want to take Lucy.”

  “No way.” He didn’t even look at her as he moved quickly saddling Sty.

  “Why not?”

  “Because she’s not fully trained,” he said. “There’s a storm on the horizon. It won’t take much to spook an inexperienced horse like her.”

  “But she’s strong.” Anna fought hard for the animal.

  “And green.” Wade’s voice was flat and she knew he considered the topic closed. She sighed and went over to a nearby stall to begin saddling up one of his many horses. “Anna.”

  Turning, she found him watching her closely. “Stay close to me out there. I don’t intend to lose you.”

  Her breath caught in her throat until she realized he was speaking factually. “I won’t get lost. After all, I grew up in this area.”

  He smiled and went back to work. Ten minutes later, six of them headed east. Joe and Prescott rode alongside Wade while Anna, Neil, and Frank rode behind. It was only mid-afternoon, but the sky had gotten so dark it looked like evening was nearly upon them. Anna didn’t like the look of the dark and angry clouds. She hoped they reached their destination quickly and had no problems pulling the first-time heifers out of the canyon. The sooner they returned safely back to the ranch, the sooner she could breathe easier. There was something about this trip that made her feel uneasy.

  Wade led them east through thick brush and rocky ravines. Anna had been truthful when she told Wade she was familiar with the area. Many times as children, her and Edmund would go exploring and would often find themselves in this particular part of the mountain range because of its breathtaking gorges.

  They crossed over Shadow River, aptly named because of the huge pine trees looming over its banks, which cast long and dark shadows across the river. Not more than several miles downstream, it emptied out into the Centralia River in a three hundred foot waterfall. It simply was nature at its best. Beautiful, breathtaking, and deadly all wrapped up in one.

  When they finally reached their destination, Anna sat back in her horse’s saddle and watched the men with a sigh of relief. So far the trip was uneventful, and hopefully would remain so. In the distance a small rumble was heard. Anna turned to look out toward the small clearing surrounded by towering pine trees toward the eastern sky. It was far too dense, however, and she was unable to see anything. Turning back toward the men she fixed her gaze on Wade, and silently hurried him along.

  Suddenly an ear-splitting thunderbolt resounded overhead. Anna literally leaped from her saddle. All the men paused, exchanged concerned looks, then worked thus much faster. With her heart still beating hard, she tilted her chin all the way up and stared straight up at the sky. The meanest looking black cloud hovered directly overhead. She brought her chin down and looked anxiously at Wade. He, however, was more intent on getting the four heifers out.

  It took two horses each to drag out one single beast. So far as she could tell, they were having no difficulty dragging them out of the deep gorge. However, for Anna it was taking far too long.

  They had just brought up the last heifer when the sky opened up and showered the earth. She reached for her slick then turned her horse around to follow Wade and the wranglers up the now wet slope. Thankfully, it wasn’t nearly as slippery as it would be shortly, and so they were able to get the heifers to higher ground with no incident.

  “Let’s get out of here.” Wade raised his arm and indicated for everyone to follow after the animals were safely moved.

  Anna was silently grateful, but still felt edgy. They rode back in the same direction they came, however were now pounded by rain coming out of the sky in huge sheets. Upon reaching Shadow River, Wade came to a halt and as Anna came up alongside him she discovered why. The river which had been fairly calm earlier, was now moving quickly downstream. She shot an anxious look to Wade, but he was already starting to make his way down the riverbank.

  Anna tried not to allow her apprehension to get the best of her, as it was apparent Wade did not feel there was any danger in crossing the turbulent river. Prescott and Joe followed him with Anna trailing after them. Neil and Frank brought up the rear. The river came up as high as her horse's forearms, but with the rampant current she could feel the choppy water reaching as high as her calves. She kept her gaze transfixed straight ahead on Wade’s back. He reached the other side and proceeded to lead Sty up the bank and Anna felt a surge of appeasement.

  Behind him, Prescott followed safely. Joe was almost at the river’s edge when suddenly his horse lost his footing. The lead hand attempted to steady the animal, but to no avail. They both tumbled and fell into the river. Anna watched horrified as the river swallowed them up and carried them away as if they were a meager piece of debris.

  She heard shouting and realized Wade was hollering at her to get out of the river. However, Anna was gripped by a numbing fear that left her immobile. Neil and Frank came up behind her and grabbed her horse’s reins and dragged her out of the river.

  A movement along the riverbank caught her attention and with a start she realized that Wade had reentered the river. Reaching far out he grabbed her reins and pulled her the remaining distance to safety before turning back and plunging both he and Sty into the river after Joe.

  Anna’s heart shot up her throat as she screamed out his name. But he did not even so much as look back. A crippling sensation seized her chest, causing her breathing to suddenly become torture. Then with a jolt, she kicked her horse and ran along the riverbank.

  “Anna,” Prescott attempted to call her back.

  Ignoring him, she searched the water until she saw Wade and Sty moving slowly through the wild current. “Wade!”

  He did not hear her and the next thing Anna knew the river unexpectedly lunged at Wade knocking both he and Sty over. Anna cried out in horror as their two heads went bobbing down the canal at a remarkable speed, but it was evident they had lost complete control. They were moving faster than her, but Anna only rode her horse harder, heedless of the now wet and slippery riverbank. Rain soaked her head and cascaded down her face, but she refused to take her eyes off Wade.

  “Wade!” she hollered his name again, utterly terrified by this point. Not more than a few yards around the approaching bend, was the river’s three hundred foot drop.

  The riverbank she was following suddenly came to a steep incline and Anna was left with no choice but to leap from her horse and clamber up the muddy slope. As she neared the top, the sound of the thunderous waterfall reached her ears. Her vision blurred and then a ghastly image seared her thoughts. She gasped, clutching her chest.

  However, without any time to resurrect the memory, she frantically searched out Wade since losing sight of him when she had to crawl up the steep embankment. Then, suddenly in the turbulent water, she saw Sty. Right before her horrified eyes, she watched as he was carried violently down the river’s wild rapids toward the edge of the drop. Then in one fatal moment, plunged to his death. There was no sign of Wade.

  “No!” she screamed and fell to the ground.

  It was that exact instance when her heinous past came flooding back. She stared frozen at the river, and felt her heart literally die. Her eyes burned from dryness as she stared transfixed at the wild current. Rain pounded the earth around her while the river took the full onslaught of the torrential downpour. However, its real deadly power lay in its wild currents and served as a cold reminder to Anna of its cruelty. In one sweeping moment it had taken her only reason to live.

  “Anna?”

  She froze, then slowly pivoted on her mud encased boots, hardly believing she heard his voice and for a split second she thought his spirit had risen from the falls. Then she saw Wade standing at the top of the bank from which she had just climbed, soaking wet.

  Anna gasped and felt the sharpest pain in her chest before the tears broke free and poured from her eyes. Getting to her feet, she slipped on the mud and fell down on one knee but didn’t care. Crying hard, she said his name and this ti
me he came to her. When he was within reach, she threw her arms round him and clung. Tears cascaded down her cheeks and she openly cried against his chest.

  “Shh, it’s all right,” he said into her ear and stroked her wet hair.

  “I thought you went over,” she said into his slicker, clinging desperately to him. “I thought you were dead.”

  He continued to hold her and stroke her hair while Anna cried in his arms. The memories that she had worked so hard and long to forget, came rushing back and the tears came harder. She began to shake, not from the wet and cold, but from the memories that had tortured her for so long.

  When her crying only got worse, Wade pulled her gently from his body and looked down into her face. “Anna? What is it? What’s wrong?”

  She looked up into his eyes and saw such compassion and tenderness. In that moment, she needed him more than she ever did before. Sobbing horribly, she cried, “I killed him.”

  He went deathly still, his face completely blank. “What are you talking about?”

  “That day in the village,” she said between hysterical sobs. “I wasn’t alone.”

  Prescott came over the riverbank. “Everything okay?”

  Wade was frowning and didn’t respond immediately. Then he replied, turning from her slightly, “Yes. How’s Joe?”

  “Grumpier than usual, but he’ll live.” His eyes darted to Anna who was visibly crying and he frowned. “What’s going on?”

  Wade looked down at her and a look of puzzlement crossed his face. “I’m not sure, but we best head back.”

  “We lost Joe’s horse,” Prescott stated. “He’ll ride back with Neil.”

  Wade nodded. “Sty’s gone too. I’ll ride with Anna.”

  Prescott nodded as well, then hesitated before leaving, obviously concerned for Anna. When he was gone, Wade pulled Anna out of his arms. “I’m soaking wet. You’re going to catch a death of a cold.”

  Anna felt her heart give a painful lurch. She was already drenched from the rain. It was obvious that Wade wanted nothing to do with her now that he knew the truth about Anna. She was a murderer.

  * * *

  The ride back to the ranch was in utter silence. Wade’s mind was completely on what Anna had told him by the river. He didn’t want her saying anything in front of anyone else in fear of incriminating herself. His mind played with all sorts of scenarios which could possibly explain this bit of information regarding Anna. She had been a mystery since the day she arrived at the ranch. Even when he felt he knew all there was to know, he was slapped with yet another shocking missing piece. He knew in his heart that whatever her crime, she was innocent. A woman could not walk away from such a horrendous event unscathed.

  Sitting in his arms on the ride home, she had gone silent and still. Her tears had dried and her hysteria had gotten under control. However, Wade wasn’t entirely sold on the thought that it was a good thing. When he found her sitting along the riverbank, he knew she had been traumatized.

  After seeing him and breaking into tears, he had thought they were for him. For the first time since knowing her, she had finally broken down and cried. However, thinking back, he realized her tears were in fact for a buried memory that resurfaced. A memory where she killed a man.

  When they finally reached the homestead, he saw to Joe and ensured he was well before heading up to the house. Prescott and Anna had already headed that way. He wanted nothing more than to go straight to Anna, but he needed to change into dry clothing first. In his room, he quickly peeled off his wet shirt and pants and replaced them with a fresh dry set. Then he headed downstairs. He found Prescott in the kitchen putting on the kettle. “Where’s Anna?”

  He gestured to the cook’s room but asked. “What’s going on Wade?”

  Hesitating, he debated whether to inform his brother or not. He would much prefer knowing the circumstances first. But as he searched his brother’s face, he realized that he had not been the only one affected by Anna’s presence on the ranch. Prescott had become very fond of her as well.

  “Hold on.”

  Tapping on the door, he waited for a reply on the opposite side. There was a moment’s pause, then, “Come in.”

  She had just finished changing into dry clothing as well and Wade’s eyes automatically dropped and took in the boy’s clothing. “Are you feeling better?”

  She nodded vaguely.

  “Could you come out here please?” There was a small hesitation where he could definitely read her misgivings. “Anna. You can trust us.”

  Her eyes lifted and he saw they were still red and sunken from her outburst. His heart ached and he wanted so much to take her back into his arms and comfort her for as long as she needed. Slowly she moved toward him and he stepped aside to let her pass. Out in the kitchen Prescott was watching them closely, a small frown dancing along his forehead, the kettle whistling behind him, unnoticed.

  “Prescott, would you pour the three of us some strong coffee.” He led her to the table and indicated a chair for her to sit, then took the one opposite. “I believe we’re going to need it.”

  “Sure, but would one of you please tell me what’s going on?”

  Wade studied her face, but she refused to look at him. “I’m afraid I can’t. Only Anna knows what happened.”

  “What happened where?” Prescott retrieved three mugs. “Up in the river? The current washed you and Joe downstream. If you hadn’t snatched on to that tree while dragging Joe, you would have surely gone over the falls with Sty.”

  His gaze was intent on Anna and he saw her visibly grimace, then slowly a tear escaped the corner of her eye and slid down her cheek. Inside, he felt her pain, but not its origin. He was tempted to go to her, but kept himself firmly seated in his chair. “What happened Anna?”

  First nothing, then she opened her mouth and he heard a small sharp intake of breath and he frowned even harder. “I wasn’t alone.”

  Puzzled, he waited for more, but when she offered none, he urged, “Go on.”

  “In the clearing. I wasn’t alone.” She was transfixed on the table surface where she placed her folded hands. “He saw me. His eyes were full of evil. I had to run.”

  Prescott brought their mugs then took a seat next to his brother. “What man?”

  Again, she hesitated, then said, “In the village. They were killing those people. They were screaming and I was so terrified.”

  Wade reached out and covered her hands with his own in a comforting and reassuring manner. He hoped she received his silent message.

  “Those women,” her voice cracked, and another tear slipped from her eye. “They were so brutal.”

  When she offered no more, Wade quietly said, “It’s all right Anna if you don’t want to say any more.”

  Her eyes lifted and he was pierced with the most tortured set of eyes he had ever seen. “I was so terrified. I had to run. But he was so heavy.”

  “He?” Prescott asked, obviously just as confused with her story line as Wade.

  “I had to carry him, but he was so heavy.” Tears flooded her cheeks and Wade felt his inside lurch in pain. “I could hear them, they were coming. I had to hide. He was so heavy. I couldn’t run.”

  “Who was heavy Anna?” He asked, all the while stroking her hands.

  “The baby.” The words rasped across her lips and Wade felt their affect all the way down his spine.

  “What baby?” Prescott inquired, trying hard to piece the story together.

  Anna could not reply right away as she was suddenly seized with the shakes and was trying hard to control them. Wade watched her with torture and wanted so much to take the burden of her pain. But first, he needed to know. “Your baby?”

  She was trying to catch her breath and he waited a heart stopping moment before she finally shook her head. “No.”

  “Whose baby?”

  “Mother’s.” The tears continued to flow and she didn’t even attempt to wipe them away. Wade removed his handkerchief from his neck a
nd got up from his chair to take the seat next to her. Gazing down into her face, he gently wiped her cheeks. She looked up at him and for the first time since the falls, trust reflected in those brown depths. “They were coming. I could hear them. I ran as fast as I could, but he was so heavy.”

  Wade nodded, silently encouraging her.

  “I had to hide,” she told him in despair. “They would find me and kill me. I was so frightened. But the baby wouldn’t stop crying.”

  “The baby led them to you?” An understanding light lit his eyes.

  “I was so scared. I hid behind Stellar Falls. But I couldn’t hear them.” She sobbed again and her eyes cried painfully up at him. “The water was so loud. And the baby wouldn’t stop crying. They were going to find me. I tried to hush him, but he kept crying. I put him beneath the water, just for a moment, to quiet him, but he only cried harder when I brought him up.”

  Wade felt the first stirring of a horrific chill run up and down his spine, but he worked hard to keep it out of his expression as he continued to hold her gaze.

  “They were going to kill me. He wouldn’t stop crying. I had to quiet him, so I put him under once more…” She stopped speaking and looked at Wade with big and terrified eyes. Anna did not need to go any further.

  “He drowned?” He asked softly and when she nodded, he pulled her into his arms and allowed her to release a long and pent up sorrow.

  “My God,” Prescott quietly said and both brothers exchanged glances over her head. He felt her body overcome with repressed sadness and guilt. Spasms rocked her small frame and Wade pulled her closer. He felt and understood her suffering. When she had nearly been killed at the river, he had felt fully to blame. It was far too powerful a responsibility when the life of another lay fully in your hands. When failed, is beyond any human comprehension or acceptance. No amount of time or understanding could ever heal the guilt.

  They sat like that for a very long time. No one said anything until at last the convulsions began to ease and she slowly regained an ounce of control. Using the kerchief, he eased her gently away to wipe some of her tears.