Page 79 of The Outlaw and the Heir

"Fuck!" he snapped as his skin began to sizzle and hiss. "Fucking Hell!"

"I've got you," I assured him.

"Go to Hell!" he snarled back, his body trying to twist under me, forcing me to hold him tighter while trying not to add to his injury.

I knew exactly what he was going through. A particularly feisty goat had once taken his horns to me and gouged my thigh, and they'd taken hot metal to it so it wasn't exposed to the elements. I still remember how I’d screamed as the fire scorched the already sensitive wound and left me wondering if perhaps death might be preferable. From the way Samuel twisted and cursed, I imagined he was going through something very similar, and I just hoped all his suffering wasn't for nothing.

"Just about...there," Elizabeth said, her expression one of utter focus as the smell of burning flesh filled my nostrils. "And there he goes."

I glanced down, only then realizing it had gone silent, and Samuel was no longer pushing and shoving against my hold to try to get free. His face was slack, having passed out from the pain. That seemed fitting in a twisted way, as it had probably been the pain that had dragged him back to consciousness.

"Lord above," I muttered, leaning over to peer at the wound. It was ugly in its redness, and I was sure it was going to hurt something fierce for days. "What happened?"

"We can go over the events of the day once we're in the clear," she said, leaning over to root through the bag again. It was a small bottle she pulled out next, dumping the red liquid over the wound and then pouring honey into it as well.

"Iodine and honey?" I wondered, glad Samuel was out cold still. Having all that thrown into his wound after everything that had happened would have felt like we were torturing him.

"Better safe than sorry," she said with a sigh, finally pulling out some clean cloth. "At least until the doctor gets here."

"He's just arrived," Walter said from the group, his mouth a thin line of worry. "I guess he was already on the road when James found him."

"That's lucky," I muttered, eyeing Samuel's wound. "Which is nice because he ain't lookin' like luck's been on his side a whole lot today."

"The Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh," Elizabeth muttered distractedly as she wrapped the wound. "We're going to have to get him up off this ground soon. Did the Doc say where he wanted to look at him?"

"No."

"Hmmm."

"Use my cabin," I said without thinking.

Elizabeth looked up, brow raised. "That will work for now. Now, you lot, go get me a cot, tie some boards under it, and bring it over so we can cart him off."

No one moved until Elizabeth pointed out four specific, random men and repeated the order, sending them off without the slightest hesitation on their part. Apparently, like me, they were useless unless a direct order was given to them.

"What happened?" I repeated as I waited for the men to return.

Her brow furrowed. “Might as well wait. You know Father is going to want an explanation as well."

A growl of frustration bubbled up in my chest, but I kept my mouth shut when I followed her gaze and saw our father was, in fact, making his way toward us. His eyes swept the assembled men, who began to fade away, probably pretending they were going back to work but, in reality, were going to lurk around to keep up to date on what was going on.

"Elizabeth," he said once he was close enough, looking down at Samuel without so much as a flicker of emotion on his face.

"Father," I grunted, annoyed at him for taking so long to show up when this was supposed to be his ranch. It wasn't like I hadn't seen his dispassionate approach when others had been hurt on the ranch, but this time, it really fed my temper.

He glanced at me before returning his attention to Elizabeth, who took a deep breath. “I've treated it as best I can. I've sent men to get something to carry him to where the Doc can look after him."

He nodded, giving a jerk of his head. "To the house, both of you."

"He's my responsibility," I ground out. "I should stay with him until?—"

"Until what?" he interrupted softly, looking at me with the same irritatingly calm stare that still felt like an examination no matter how many times I saw it.

I knew what he was aiming at, and it infuriated me further. There wasnothingI could do for Samuel at this point, andeveryone knew it. Elizabeth had already done more to help him than I could, and that left little for me to do other than fret while those with more knowledge and skill looked after him. Even knowing that I loathed the idea of leaving him with strangers at his most vulnerable. I knew damn well he would hate the idea and would accept even my meager presence if he had a choice.

I said nothing, however, gritting my teeth and putting my head down to follow my father. Elizabeth was at my side, and I glanced over to see how she was handling things. She had the same steely, focused expression as she walked, although the rest of her wasn't nearly as put together. Her hat was gone, and the braid she'd tied her hair up in had come loose and sent her hair everywhere. Her skirt was gone, pants torn, blouse dirty and bloody, with blood smeared over her hands and boots.

"Now that you're not busy,areyou okay?" I asked her as we mounted the steps to the house.

---