Nothing But Trouble (20 page)

“Of course you will,” she said, her lips stretching into a smile, her voice suddenly confident.  That was his girl.  Lifting herself up to the challenge.  But deep inside all he felt was how he’d let her down.

He didn’t waste any time packing.  They could leave their gear and come back for it later, after Melanie was safe.  Before he mounted Thunder, he checked his saddlebag twice to make sure the radio was packed and ready.  He was about to strap his shotgun on the saddle and abruptly stopped. 

Gripping the cold steel, he turned to Melanie, who was standing a few feet away.  He held out the shotgun to her.  “Keep this by your side.”

She shook her head and placed her hand over her stomach. 

“I’ve never shot a gun before in my life.  I wouldn’t know what to do with it.”

“I can’t leave you here with nothing.  You have to have something to protect yourself.”

She opened her mouth to speak, but instead of saying her peace, she gripped the gun awkwardly in her hands.  Stoney quickly explained how to unlock the safety and fire. 

The heat of the sun was beating down on him when he finally mounted Thunder.  The warm smell of sagebrush and pine lingered in the air.  He nodded his head toward the gun on the ground by the tent.  “You use it if you have to.”

“I’m not going to need it.  You’ll be back,” she said, smiling.  He felt like hell was eating a hole inside of him, and she was smiling her sweet sunshine smile.  Lord, how he loved this woman.

He rode away with only one thought.  He was leaving Melanie behind to face God only knew what.  And though she had faith that he was going to get help for her, he had no idea if he was going to make it in time.

It was more than two hours before Stoney made it to a meadow.  It immediately brought back the memory of watching Melanie picking wildflowers on the day they rode out at the ranch. 

He was still more than a half days ride to the nearest Ranger Station.  Thunder was pushing at a good clip, moving with Stoney as if the animal were an extension of him.  The weather was on his side.  He just made it to the cover of the pines when he’d heard a sound the made him pause.  “Whoa, Thunder,” he said, pulling on the reins and listening.  Although they were no longer moving, Stoney had a hard time hearing over Thunder’s movement as he clopped in place on the dry earth. 

There it was again.  It was faint, but unmistakable.  He jumped from his mount, dug through the saddlebag for the two-way radio, and ran to the open meadow he’d just passed.

The big sky was crystal blue, and the mountains looked as if they held him captive.  He’d never felt trapped by the mountains before.  This had always been his country.  But with Melanie alone and not knowing what to expect when he made it back to her, he felt as though he were imprisoned there.  He looked into the sky and focused on the sound of the engine until he found the tiny speck in the vast cerulean ocean that was a small water plane flying overhead.  This was it!  All he had to do was radio a message to the plane and find the spot where he could land.  He only prayed that it was not too late.

* * *

Melanie's eyes drifted open to the sound of a droning hum.  The florescent lights above the bed--yes, she was definitely in a bed and not on some cold, hard rock--blinded her until she could adjust her eyes.  Where was she?  She tried to remember.  The mountains.  The trail.  The lightening.  Stoney’s arms.  Stoney leaving her...

Turning her head, she saw the familiar sight of an IV bag hung on a chrome stand with a rubber tube attached to her right arm.  The room was a bright antiseptic white, almost blinding her eyes.  Her head--her whole body for that matter--felt as if a sledgehammer had taken open assault on her. 

It took considerable strength to roll over and when she did, she saw him.  Stoney was propped in a side chair too small to fit his long body, and he was asleep with his head rolled back against the wall. 

She gazed at him for a long time until tears blurred her vision, memorizing every detail on his face, his hands, trying to convince herself that he was real.  He hadn’t left her in the mountains.  Thank God, he hadn’t left her.  As he'd promised, he'd kept his word and come back for her.

Her mouth was so dry she couldn’t stand it.  She needed water fast.  “Stoney,” she rasped in a voice just loud enough to cause him to stir.  And it was a good thing he did because she didn’t know if she had the energy to do it again.

His chin was propped up by his balled fist and his body was curled against the arms of the chair uncomfortably.  He stirred in the chair until his behind slipped off the seat and he slid to the floor, waking him completely. 

Yawning, Stoney rubbed his face.  She noticed the growth of beard darkening his face.  His face was ragged, and he seemed older than he looked yesterday.  Wait, no it wasn’t yesterday that they snuggled together, making love in their sleeping bags.  It seemed so long ago, though she wasn’t sure how long.  Two days, she recalled him saying at some point.  They were two days away from getting help.  How long had she been like this?

Abruptly, he turned to her, his eyes filling with light as he noticed for the first time she was awake.  He was at her side in an instant, touching her face, feathering his fingers across her cheek as if the very sight of her was his only link to life itself.  He spoke on a sigh of relief.  “You’re back.”

Melanie swallowed.  Her mouth was cotton dry, preventing her from speaking.  She gave it another try and mouthed the word “water”, but instantly got frustrated with her lack of progress.

“That’s my Sunshine.  You get as ticked as your little heart desires.  Try again.  What do you need?  You need Joshua?”

She grabbed his shirt to stop him from leaving her side and motioned to the water jug on the tray table.

“You’re thirsty?  You want a drink?”

She nodded wearily, slumped her heavy head back on the pillow and waited until he pressed the paper cup to her lips.  No doubt she’d been on fluids since she’d arrived at the clinic, but she felt the cool liquid seep right through her parched tongue. 

“How long?” she managed to get out.

“We got here yesterday.  You've been...sleeping.  You need to get some rest.”

“My head.  Oh, it hurts, Stoney.”

Stoney's chest tightened, from relief, from the love he felt for Melanie.  She looked so frail, it was killing him.  “Hold on, I’m running for Joshua.”

“No, don’t go.  I need you here.”

He wiped the tear than trickled down her pale cheeks.  “Okay, I’m here.  I’m right here.”

“I’ve been such a fool,” she mumbled, swallowing a sob.

He should have told her she was right.  She’d been a damn fool not to warn him about her medical condition.  It nearly cost her her life.  He shuddered inside just thinking about the seizure she'd had as the helicopter landed.  Thank God they'd been at the clinic when it happened.  He couldn't think of what he'd do if he lost her.  But this wasn’t a time for I-told-you-so’s.  He wasn’t about to kick her down now that she couldn’t fight back.

“All this time I’ve been thinking it was them, but it wasn’t.”  She tried to roll over, away from him, but the IV kept her back.

“Hold on, Melanie,” he said softly.  He eased himself down on the bed and pulled off his cowboy hat, tossing it to the table.  He gently gripped her arms and pulled her closer, trying to give her a shred of comfort, being careful not to yank on her tubes.

“What are you talking about, Sunshine?”

“It was never them.”

Was she still delirious?  She was talking in riddles.  “Who?  Who are you talking about?”

“My parents.”  She started to sob softly.  “All this time I’ve been thinking they were the enemy.  I’ve been so angry at them for trying to control my life.  I couldn’t see that it was my body that was letting me down.”

“No.  Don’t talk like that.  You’re strong.  You’re feistier than the maddest bull I’ve ever ridden.”  He chuckled, but his tension remained.  She was hurt and scared, and so was he.  He’d almost lost her.  “A lot of people would have died out there, but you held on.”

“You didn’t call my father, did you?”

Guilt stabbed at him.  He hadn't even thought of it.  “I wanted to make sure you were okay first.  I’ll call as soon-”

“No, don't.  Please, Stoney, don’t do it.”  Her eyes were pleading with him.

“I have to.  If I don’t call him, he’ll call the ranch.”

“You don’t have to tell him what happened.”

“I can’t ask my folks to lie.”

“I don’t want them to.  I didn’t tell them where I was going.”  She swallowed back some sobs.  “They’ll make me come home.”

“No one is going to make you do anything you-”

“You don’t know them!”  She tried to sit up, pulling at her IV again, but he kept her back.  “They’ll come.”

“They’re going to worry.”

“They won’t listen to me.  You don’t know what it’s like.”  She was crying uncontrollably now, her body shaking with each sob. 

“They love you,” he said softly.  And he knew he did, too.  If it was him, he’d want to know.  Damn, he wished he had known, but she kept her diabetes from him.  The whole agonizing ride back to the reservation he'd envisioned her dying in his arms.  The pain of it still burned in his chest now.

“You don’t understand.  Unless you’ve lived my life you couldn’t.  It’s like walking a fine line between love and abuse.  I know they love me, but they keep me locked up until I feel so suffocated.  I know they’re afraid.  Maybe more so because I never was.  I thought I could beat diabetes, but it won and I lost.  I can’t go back to living that way, Stoney.  I just can’t.”

She was breathing hard and he knew her tirade had taken its toll.

“We don’t have to talk about this now,” he insisted.  “Later...when you're feeling better.”

She dragged in a deep breath and squeezed his hand. 

Closing his eyes, he leaned forward and kissed her head, breathing in her scent, trying to memorize the feel of her silky skin against his lips.  “Get some rest.  I’m just going to find Joshua.”  He kissed her again and with great strength, forced himself from her side.

Closing the door behind him, he heard the sounds of voices in the waiting room.  Of children crying and mothers trying their best to soothe them.  Stoney pulled at the ache in his back from sleeping on the chair and heard his boots echo in the hallway as he walked.  He found Joshua at the end of the hall outside an examining room talking to Ivan Collins, the Ranger who piloted the water plane he'd been able to radio.

Joshua Lightfoot was not only his cousin, but Stoney had considered him his best friend.  The years they'd spent together in their youth had forged a bond that nothing could shake.  At times, it was if they read each others minds.  Although both men stood eye to eye and had the same dark hair and eyes, Joshua's Arapaho heritage was prominent in his features.  “You look like hell,” Joshua said, slapping Stoney on the back.

“I feel just as good, thank you,” Stoney told his cousin.

“I take it Melanie is awake.”

“Thank God.”

“Good, I'll go examine her in a minute.  I know you want to hang out here, but I'm going to keep her another day or two.”