Loving Her Cowboys: Cowboys Online 3

by Jan Springer

  Dan had also called the new owner of North Country Air for help. They hadn’t been able to send any search planes due to their search-and-rescue license having lapsed.

  There would be no help coming from anyone.

  Damn it! That same horrible helpless feeling she had experienced this past spring when Dan had gone missing was crashing in all around her. Anxiety curled through her like a horrible snake. She could feel her thoughts begin to tumble out of control. The familiar panic screamed through her head.

  No! This was not the time to freak out. At least not in front of Brady and Dan. If they knew she was going into panic mode, one of them would stay here and she just knew that Rafe needed both of them out looking for him.

  "Please, JJ. Stay and man the satellite phone in case Rafe calls. If he shows, let us know. When we find him, we will call you,” Brady said.

  His face and tone had softened, but Dan continued to look grim. JJ nodded and stepped away from the machines.

  Moments later, Brady and Dan roared off on the main trail, their red taillights disappearing behind the thick white mist that was draped over the ranch and surrounding areas.

  Cold, damp autumn air speared through JJ as she headed back across the yard to the house. Fear for Rafe’s safety made her cry and as she entered the mudroom she heard the phone ringing.

  Rafe?

  Her heart hammered against her chest as she hurried down the hall and ran into the office to catch the caller. Hopefully she wasn’t too late.

  Rafe awoke to the sound of a scream. It rocked through him like a jolt of lightning and he opened his eyes. He was greeted to a stream of moonlight as it shone through one of the cabin’s two windows. The scream came again and he relaxed as he recognized the sound.

  It was an owl. It wasn’t the traditional hoot, but a screech that accompanies an owl in heat.

  Shit. What he wouldn’t do to be back at the ranch and in the welcome embrace of JJ. Rafe swallowed against the sting of tears that suddenly blurred his vision. Emotions bubbled up from his chest and he wanted to cry. Wanted to pound his fists into something and ask what the hell had he done wrong that his life would end like this? Just yesterday…or maybe it had been the day before, he’d thought how lucky he was in having JJ, this ranch and such good partners like Dan and Brady.

  Man, things sure did change in an instant. It made him realize that life was way too precious. He’d be sure to remember that…if he got out of this alive.

  He trembled beneath another assault of shivers.

  Fever. His leg must be infected. He should loosen the tourniquet or it might cut the blood flow. He tried to roll onto his side to make it easier to reach down to his belt, but he couldn’t so much as move.

  He was screwed. From somewhere far off an odd sound broke the silence. A motor?

  Was he beginning to hallucinate? Most likely. He listened but could hear nothing except his heavy breathing. He tried to rein in his painful gasps and for a short few seconds there was silence.

  And then something.

  There. An engine? Plane maybe?

  Shit! If he could just get outside, pile together some wood and get a signal fire going.

  The urge to do exactly that was so strong he actually imagined himself standing there in front of a wall of fire. Heat blasted against him. His face felt so hot. Perspiration dripped into his eyes. He blinked them away.

  “Hey, glad you’re finally awake. What the hell you been doing with yourself?” Dan’s voice crashed through the orange flames.

  Rafe felt disoriented. Why could he hear Dan? What was going on? Darkness drifted over him. Everything went silent.

  “The wound is infected. We need to cauterize it.”

  Hell, was that Brady talking? Rafe figured he must be hallucinating. Had to be.

  Suddenly Brady’s face hovered into view. He was smiling. It was a tight smile. Was he concerned?

  “Everything is going to be all right, man. We’ve got a rescue plane coming. All we need to do is hoist you onto this litter and head down to the lake and into the plane, but it’s going to hurt like a bitch when we move you,” Brady said.

  “But you can handle it, right, Rafe?” Day was here now, too.

  They’d found him!

  Emotions thick and raw came out of nowhere, and hot tears blurred Rafe’s vision. Oh man, he was going to lose it. He was going to start bawling like a freaking baby.

  “Dan, grab him under his arms. I’ll grab his legs.”

  Strong hands slid under his armpits. Another set slid around his ankles.

  Man, he was not dreaming? This was really happening?

  “At the count of three,” Brady said.

  “One.”

  Rafe braced himself.

  “Two.”

  Hell, he was not a baby. How bad could the pain be? Certainly not any worse than what he’d already endured.

  “Three.”

  Searing pain slashed through Rafe as he was lifted through the air. He screamed. Blackness hovered at the edges of his vision. Then nothing.

  * * * * *

  I can land this plane. I have to. For Rafe.

  JJ’s shoulders were so tight, she swore if someone tapped her there, her flesh would shatter into a zillion pieces. Her nerves crackled with apprehension as she gazed out the window and looked over the rugged tree line below. Gusts of wind pummelled the plane, jerking them back and forth.

  Shoot! Why had she allowed Kaley to talk her into flying?

  She still could not believe that when she’d picked up the phone, it had been Kaley who had overheard her new boss grumble about not having the required license in place to send out a plane do a search-and-rescue.

  Upon further questions, Kaley had discovered the call had come from Moose Ranch. She had been in the air within the hour and had reached the ranch way before the crack of dawn. By then, seven hours had passed since Brady and Dan had left. During that time JJ received word from Brady that they had found Rafe, and he was injured.

  Her gut had twisted in agony at the news. But she had managed to keep it together, letting Brady know that Kaley was on the way with her plane. Brady had given his coordinates and. upon inspecting the topographical map, JJ discovered a lake nearby where they could land the plane and get Rafe out fast.

  Kaley had insisted JJ fly the plane due to the fact Kaley was running on no sleep for more than twenty hours. She’d said the alertness required for a search-and-rescue landing was shot, but Kaley didn’t look too tired to her. Reluctantly, JJ had agreed to fly under Kaley’s tutelage. But what if she did something wrong? What if she crashed the plane into the lake?

  She had only landed the plane once.

  “There it is. Smaller than I thought,” Kaley mumbled as she checked the compass and then pointed out the window at an area down below that appeared to be a black puddle, its sides shrouded in white mist.

  Good lord! How was she going to land the plane on that? She would be going in blind. It was still too dark.

  “Bank to the left and go down a bit lower so we can get a look for possible obstructions in the water,” Kaley instructed.

  “There’s practically no visual and isn’t it too dark?” JJ gasped as she began to circle around and slowly descended.

  “It’s always a risk landing some place you are not familiar with. The sky will be lightening soon and by the time you have circled around a couple of times to check the visual you’ll see enough to land.”

  The woman’s confidence irritated JJ. She almost glared at her instructor, wanting to insinuate to Kaley that she had to be crazy. There was no way a few minutes would make a difference in light.

  JJ kept her mouth shut. She could only hope Kaley knew what she was talking about.

  Good grief! With her many years of flight experience, Kaley must know what she was talking about?

  Several minutes passed as JJ followed further instructions, bringing the plane lower and lower.

  “I don’t see anything,” Kaley mut
tered.

  No shit.

  “Okay, circle to the other end of the lake and come in right down the middle. According to topographical map the lake is deep. Doesn’t show any islands either. You should have enough room for a safe landing.”

  No islands? She hadn’t even thought about that.

  “Should have enough room?” JJ gasped. Oh my God!

  “Hey, sweetie. Nothing is ever one hundred percent safe. We do the best we can under whatever circumstances are given. Right?”

  JJ nodded vigorously. Panic wiggled through her.

  “You can do it. I have the utmost confidence in you.”

  Well, at least someone had confidence. JJ licked her dry lips and cleared her throat. She turned the plane again and headed lower. She glanced down, totally surprised that the mist appeared to be lessening and the lake had changed from a black pond to silver of about half a mile long and a quarter-mile wide.

  “Should I not straighten up?” JJ asked.

  The treeline grew closer. And closer. Perspiration blossomed over her forehead.

  “You’re doing fine, JJ. Keep dropping.”

  Man, this was nuts. If she got any lower, she would be able to reach out and touch the freaking treetops.

  A crosswind slammed into the plane shoving them sideways. JJ swore.

  Kaley chuckled. “Typical newbie.” She tossed JJ a glance and smiled.

  “No offense meant.”

  JJ refused to answer. Kaley had to be nuts — or maybe she was just suicidal dropping so low?

  JJ’s adrenaline pumped anxiety through her like a runaway piston. Her heart crashed against her chest a mile a minute. Surprise burst inside her as sunshine glinted off the windshield, momentarily blinded her. To the east, the sun peeked over the towering pine treetops, casting a silvery glow over the sky. Suddenly Kaley straightened in her chair, fully alert.

  “Okay, it is going to be tight, so I need you to follow my instructions without question. Pretend I am the instrument panel. Trust it before you trust yourself. Do you remember that from your lessons?”

  JJ nodded.

  Many a pilot had crashed their plane when caught in the darkness or in fog because they had gone with their instincts thinking the plane was going up, yet it was actually going down. That she had to trust the plane’s instruments had been drilled into JJ early in her lessons.

  “Okay, bank ten degrees to the right,” Kaley ordered.

  JJ held her breath and did as she was instructed.

  “Okay. Good. Now just a bit lower.”

  Oh boy, she hoped Kaley knew what she was doing.

  The sound of an approaching plane had Brady shouting to Dan on the front end of the litter to pick up speed. It had been torturously slow-going as the two of them carried Rafe. The area around the lake, which was about a quarter of a mile from the cabin, was heavily forested, with no trails. Branches ripped into his face and up ahead of him Dan cursed.

  When they had found Rafe, unconscious and bleeding on the cabin floor, they had quickly cauterized the ugly wound, and tried to get him hydrated and warm. But Brady knew from the paleness of Rafe’s face and his uneven breathing that they needed to get Rafe to a hospital.

  When Brady had found an area where the satellite phone worked, he’d been beyond relieved when JJ had told him her instructor from North Country Air was on her way to the ranch. He had given JJ their coordinates.

  Later, he had hailed JJ again and the pilot had informed him they could land a float plane in the nearby lake at first light.

  Heck, JJ had been right. Moose Ranch needed a plane. In Rafe’s condition, they would have had a bad time securing him in a trailer and bringing him out for hours over the trails. The rough ride might have killed him.

  “I see the lake. Just up ahead,” Dan called out.

  From the makeshift stretcher, Rafe groaned. His face was deathly white against the darkness of the forest, and Brady’s stomach twisted with unease.

  The roar of engines just above made him jump.

  They broke out of the forest just in time to see the white plane’s large pontoons slap against the water. Hell, the pilot sure did know her stuff. She came in nice and slow and ran right down the middle, hitting the water with a huge silver splash, sending several Canada geese soaring skyward. They squawked loudly with irritation at being disturbed.

  Dan and Brady watched as the plane moved slowly to the other end of the lake and made a tight turn.

  “They’re looking for us,” Dan commented.

  Brady grabbed the white undershirt he had removed from himself back at the cabin knowing they might need some form of a signal for the plane and started frantically waving the shirt. Dan grabbed some softball-sized rocks and threw them into the water. The waving of white and the splashing of rocks would hopefully get their attention.

  His phone rang and Brady reached for it.

  “We’ve got you in our sights. We’ll be right there.” It was the pilot, Kaley.

  “That was a great landing.” Brady acknowledged.

  “You can thank JJ. She’s the one who landed the plane.”

  Brady was stunned. Surprise mixed with pride.

  Un-freaking-believable. What the hell with JJ doing landing a plane in such dire circumstances?

  “ETA. One minute. Out.” The phone went quiet

  Brady shoved his phone back into its holster. Anger gripped him and he could barely think straight as he watched the plane rumble closer. The lake didn’t appear to have any debris that would tangle with the giant pontoons, but the wings would prevent JJ from getting too close to shore, so he tried to figure out how they were going to get Rafe on board without jostling him too much. He especially would like to keep Rafe’s injured leg out of the water, but it might not be possible.

  From his vantage he could now clearly see JJ. Her features were tight as she concentrated on slowing the plane. Seconds later the engines ceased and the forest fell into silence.

  A moment went by and then the door opened and Kaley appeared. She waved at them and then she tossed a yellow object, the size of a large box, out of the plane. It landed on the water with a splash and a loud hissing sound followed. The item turned into a rubber raft as it quickly inflated.

  Wow! The woman came prepared. An instant later, Kaley jumped into the raft, paddle in hand.

  Okay, so maybe he should not be so pissed off at the instructor. It appeared she knew what she was doing. He suddenly realized that this woman, with her years of experience, and being a flight instructor, might be a damned good influence for JJ. Hell, JJ might know what she was talking about after all. Damned if he was going to admit his realization to her. At least not just yet.

  Chapter Five

  She needed to take some first aid courses, JJ thought as she lay on the hospital bed beside Rafe and stared at the window. Rain pounded against the panes, making quite the noise. But Rafe remained fast asleep due to the pain medications that the doctor had ordered.

  Thankfully, Rafe had not required surgery, but he had been given a blood transfusion due to losing so much blood. He’d also been given strong antibiotics to fight the infection.

  Dan and Brady had explained how they had discovered Rafe. Their ATV lights had picked up the fresh tire treadmarks of his machine along a side trail, and they’d found him rather quickly once they realized he’d been heading for the cabin in that area. Had they waited for daybreak to begin the search, the ensuing rain would have made a rescue longer.

  JJ said another prayer of thanks. Probably the hundredth prayer since they had arrived here two days ago. She had not left Rafe’s side since then except to grab something to eat, which had not been much. She just did not have an appetite since seeing Rafe’s prone figure in that life raft.

  How quickly bad things could happen and it kind of destroyed her confidence knowing that everyday life was going to continue no matter what happened. Nothing was a given. Change was always happening. Good and bad.

  She just wasn’t
sure how she could deal with knowing that everything she had — her sexy cowboys, their rustic ranch and her way of life — could vanish within the blink of an eye.

  A sudden touch on her hand had her head snapping up from staring at the window to discover three bouquets of flowers plus three women.

  Surprise rushed through JJ. Some of the pilots from North Country Air had come to visit!

  Blue, Kaley and Kelly!

  JJ made a move to crawl off the bed, but the women shook their heads urging her to stay.

  “Hi guys, thanks so much for dropping by. These flowers are gorgeous,” she said as the women placed their bouquets on the nearby windowsill.

  “Hey, this place needed to be prettied up,” Kelly said with a smile.

  “Yeah, especially when you have an injured, hot cowboy on your hands. Flowers are a nice distraction when he’s fast asleep,” Blue said with a wink.

  “How is he doing?” Kelly asked softly.

  “He suffered a concussion from a fall and it appears he was chopping some firewood at one of the shelters and somehow nailed the blade into his shin. They gave him some blood, but they expect a full recovery. The doctor said he’ll need some physio for his leg.”

  “Hmm, he doesn’t strike me as the type who is going to hang around here for physio,” Blue commented with a frown. She gazed at Rafe and her features softened.

  “Has he woke up yet?” Blue asked.

  “A few times. Not for long though. The drugs make him sleepy,” JJ answered.

  “Where are Brady and Dan? Back at the ranch?” Kelly asked.

  “Yes, they have their chores to tend to. They said they felt useless here. So I told them to go home.”

  The three woman nodded.

  “Oh and huge congratulations on that landing,” Blue suddenly exclaimed with a huge smile.

  “Yeah, Kaley said you dropped onto that little lake just like a pro,” Kelly complimented.

  “Actually, I said she was better than a pro. She is a natural. Now if she would only set up some more flying lessons, or better yet…” Kaley winked at Kelly then returned her attention to JJ.