Peace River (Rockland Ranch Series) (30 page)

             
Rossen was still talking to her and his gentle voice was helping to calm her, but she clung to him, afraid to let go.  She realized Slade was kneeling next to her, and his voice and touch for some reason made her cry all the harder.  He backed up to sit against the stall wall and gently pulled her onto his lap.  Slowly, with his tender encouragement, she got control of herself although she was still shaking.  She looked up to realize there were a number of cowboys in the alleyway.  A uniformed police officer pushed his way into the stall followed closely by a paramedic. 

The policeman began to ask
Rossen and Sean discreet questions, and the paramedic crouched down in front of Isabel and was carefully trying to check for injuries.  Through the haze in her brain she understood that the police in the barn alleyway, with the help of the cowboys, had handcuffed Leland and were having to practically carry him through the barn to remove him. 

The paramedic was saying something about a concussion
, and Slade helped her up and into a waiting ambulance.  Once inside they helped her lay down on the gurney, but almost immediately she had to sit up to be violently sick.  She was still shaking and couldn’t help the tears that kept overwhelming her.  They helped her to a seat on the side of the gurney instead and she felt the ambulance pull away from the barn.  

             
Twice more on the way to the hospital she was sick and her head throbbed.  Every time she took a breath a sharp pain would shoot through her chest.  The pain brought back the fear and the fear made her sad.  It all made her control feel so fragile.  Kenny was watching her and kept hugging her and she knew he could see what she was feeling. 

B
y the time she was unloaded at the hospital emergency entrance she was doing better.  She kept telling herself she was safe and Slade helped that, but she still felt positively miserable.  They helped her in and she lay in a cubicle with Slade standing beside her holding her hand.  They were trying to give her something for pain, but every time they gave her a pill, she threw it up, so they ultimately gave her a shot.  Finally, after what seemed hours, she felt herself growing relaxed, the pain receded and she slept.

             
Waking sometime later, the pain was better.  So was the fear, but she was horribly disoriented.  Even just trying to turn her head made her sickeningly dizzy.  Slade was there beside her, holding her hand and encouraging her to talk to the nurse.  They adjusted the head of her bed and eventually, if she held her head perfectly still, she could keep the world from spinning.  She was still incredibly sick to her stomach and the nurse laid a cool cloth on her forehead and placed a cold pack on the back of her neck. 

             
The next twenty-four hours were a mixed up dream of nausea, nightmares, and fading in and out of a spinning world.  Rossen and Sean came and gave her a blessing, and ultimately Slade sat right on her bed and put his arm around her.  She leaned against the strength of his chest and was finally able to relax and rest.  

             
When she next awoke again, she could finally open her eyes and turn her head without making everything spin out of control.  Slade was still there beside her, looking a little tired but handsome as ever.  He took her hand in his, smiled sadly and said, “I don’t know which is worse, being the injured, or watching.”  

             
She considered this for a minute and had to agree.  “I’m not sure either, but I’m grateful you’re here.”  Her voice sounded as weak as she felt.  “Thank you for holding me and helping me rest.”  He kissed the palm of her hand and she closed her eyes again just for a moment and awoke again hours later. 

             
This time she felt markedly better.  She wanted to sit up, albeit slowly, and order a pizza.  Slade laughed at her and said he had a surprise.  He walked to the door and disappeared into the hallway and returned with Naomi in tow.  Isabel basked in the hug she received.  She couldn’t have loved her anymore had she known Naomi all her life. 

             
Naomi sat on the other side of her and asked, “Rough couple of days huh?”  There was sympathy in her eyes.

             
Isabel nodded carefully.  “Actually, I’ve felt ridiculously lousy.  However, I’ve had a very handsome and attentive caregiver.”  She squeezed Slade’s hand.  “I feel so much better this afternoon and now I just want to go home to the trailer with the guys.”

             
Naomi patted her other hand and said, “Actually its two-twenty in the morning and the trailer is two states away at a rodeo in California.”

             
Isabel’s eyes flew to Slade.  “Did I make you miss two whole rodeos?”

             
“No, just one, but you’re worth it.  Heck, I’d rather sit at the bedside of a seriously delusional, hot woman than rodeo any day.  It’s very enlightening.  I can now say I’ve seen you completely out of your head and I still adore you.”  He smiled at her, but it didn’t reach his eyes. 

Naomi lo
oked from one to the other and said to Isabel, “I just now got in and I’m starving.  Would you mind if I run grab a bite down at the hospital coffee shop?”  Isabel only shook her head and then wished that she hadn’t as Naomi patted her hand once more and slipped out.

             
After she left, Isabel studied Slade’s profile trying to figure out what was bothering him.  Even Naomi had seemed to sense it.  Finally, Isabel decided she was still too out of it to understand and she asked him outright, “Are you upset with me?” 

             
He shook his head.  “No.  Of course not, why would I be?”  He looked up at her, but she still sensed that there was something he wasn’t saying.

             
She grimaced in confusion.  “I’m trying to figure that out, only my brain is still a little fuzzy for much deductive logic.”  She paused.  “I’m assuming I’ve had a brain concussion.” 

He
blinked and nodded sadly.  “A bad one.”

             
Yeah, he was upset with her, but why?  She asked, “Slade, what’s going on?”  She didn’t understand at all.

             
“Nothing.  What do you mean?”  She was suddenly very tired—too tired to try to read his mind.  The only time they had really been angry with each other had been her first experience with Leland Wilde. Now Slade wouldn’t communicate with her over him again.  Did he think she had sought Leland out after he had warned her?  Is that what was going on?

             
She didn’t want to irritate him, but she couldn’t just ignore the problem either.  Tiredly, she said, “Saying nothing is going on, when something is going on, isn’t honest.  Are you sure you don’t want to tell me about it?” 

“Is,
hon, I don’t have anything to tell.  Honest.”

Still confused,
she asked, “Do you think I sought him out?  Is that it?” 

He turned
in his chair to look at her.  “No, of course not.  Why would I think something like that?” 

             
She rubbed her forehead.  “I don’t know.  It’s just the only reason I can think of for you to be angry with me right now.”  She knew she sounded close to tears and she was.

             
Softly, he asked, “Why do you think I’m angry with you?” 

             
“Aren’t you?”  Her question was gently put and she added, “You seem like you are.  I feel like you wish I hadn’t done this.”

             
He leaned forward.  “Done this?  Isabel, you didn’t do this.  Honey . . .”  He pulled his chair closer to her bed and took her hand in his again.  His voice was eminently gentle.  “Isabel… The last thing I would be at you right now is mad.  I’m sad that you’re hurt.  I’m afraid it’s more than physical hurt.  I’m unable to forgive him—yet.  I’m unsure of what to do about this.  But mostly, I’m just so, so very sorry that I didn’t protect you.  Oh, honey, I’m not mad at you.  I’m just bitterly disappointed in myself for letting you down.  You didn’t do this.” 

             
He looked down at their hands.  “The doctors didn’t think he raped you . . .”  He closed his eyes and shook his head before continuing, “But I’m sure that’s what he had in mind, and I’m sure you understood that at the time.  He’s done it before.”

Slade sighed and looked at her and asked huskily, “
How do I apologize for not preventing that?  How can I ever take back broken bones, or a brain concussion and a black eye from a beautiful, sweet daughter of God?  I was supposed to be protecting you.  And I blew it.  All for a stupid rodeo.  I’m not mad at you.  I just don’t know how to fix this.  I’m so sorry.  This certainly wasn’t your fault.  It was mine.  We shouldn’t have left you alone.”  He met her blue eyes with his own sad emerald ones.  

             
She carefully shook her head.  “This was not your fault, Slade.  Or mine.  The blame is his and his only.”  She started to cry again and whispered, “I don’t know how to fix this either, Slade, but I’ll be okay if we’re trying to be strong together.”  The tears came faster because if they couldn’t pull together, she’d be more hurt than ever. 

             
He sat on her bed again, leaned back against the raised head and gathered her back into his arms.  “Go back to sleep, honey.”  He smoothed her hair back from her face.  “I’ll be here when you wake up and we’ll be strong together.”

             
Snuggling against him, she closed her eyes.  His solid chest was unbelievably comforting.  He was wrong.  He knew exactly how to fix this. 

              They released her the next day and Slade took her and Naomi to a nearby hotel.  She really did have a black eye.  She couldn’t even remember getting it in the ordeal.  Her head felt better and her ribs were healing. 

W
hen the police finally came to take a report from her she was adamant full charges be filed.  The police were surprised she was so sure about it and Slade wasn’t thrilled about her having to testify against Wilde face to face, but they both understood when she explained that she had to do this so Leland Wilde could never hurt another woman this way again.  

             
Because she was from out of town the local law enforcement was going to try to speed everything up.  They asked if she could actually stay in town for the proceedings.  She finally persuaded Slade to catch a flight to meet up with Rossen and Sean so he didn’t miss any more rodeos.  He only agreed to go if he hired a local security service to stay with her.  When they arrived, she thanked Naomi and sent her home as well. 

It actuall
y worked out okay even though sometimes Isabel still felt completely lousy from the slowly healing brain concussion.  One of Isabel’s bodyguards was a tough but dynamic young woman named Megan who was working her way through the local police academy.  The other was a former marine, now PI, named Beverly.  Isabel felt strangely protected and befriended at the same time.  When she felt up to it, they shopped and she bought them all some beautiful new clothes while she was hanging out.  In the wee hours of the morning when the nightmares would hit, they would order pizza and sit with her and talk.  Slade called at least once everyday and they had long conversations.  He eventually flew back to be with her for the trial where Wilde was convicted.  

                                          ****

              Unbeknownst to any of them, the wait for the trial was actually a blessing in disguise.  The strangers spotted at the ranches had been working with Judd, but they'd never caught sight of either Carrie, Slade, or Rossen so they'd given up looking in Wyoming.  By using information he found on-line from the different rodeos, Judd himself had finally caught up to Slade, but after watching him for several days without catching a glimpse of Carrie, Judd decided he had the wrong cowboy again and went back home to California to restart at square one.  He lost more than a month before he realized from more checking that Slade had, in fact, been the cowboy with Carrie. 

Chapter 13

             
When the trial was finally over and they flew to meet up with Rossen and Sean, they were only three weeks out from the National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas.  Slade and Rossen had all but clinched a spot among the top fifteen in the world and though Slade was only ranked 16
th
in the all-around standings, things had turned out remarkably well. 

             
They were back in Texas for a round of four rodeos before their final trip of the year out west.  After leaving Texas they'd have one more rodeo in California and then head for Las Vegas and their goal of the National Finals. 

They ha
d just checked into a hotel in New Braunfels which was going to be their home base between three of the last rodeos, and Isabel was dressing for that night’s competition, when Slade knocked on her door.  As she opened it, she was amazed to admit not just Slade, but Dante and another man and woman she had never met, as well. 

             
She squealed when she saw Dante and ran into his arms for just a moment.  All four of them had relatively serious faces so she cut her greetings short and went to Slade and took his hand, waiting to hear his explanation.  She was again amazed when he said, “Isabel, I’d like to introduce you to Special Agent Douglas Gray and Special Agent Natasha Keary of the United State’s Federal Bureau of Investigation.”  Isabel looked back at Slade wide-eyed and hesitantly shook their hands politely.