Page 43 of A Dangerous Heart
They waited. No response. Just the twitter of a few birds and the sound of rushing water in the distance. Isaac kept climbing. Her heart pumped double time, but she could only manage shallow breaths. Were they close? She tripped over a half-buried root and lurched forward.
Isaac turned in time to break her fall. She clutched his shoulders when he would have let her go, couldn’t tear her eyes away from the face that had somehow become so dear to her. She couldn’t let Victor get anywhere near Isaac or his family. It would be Theo all over again.
“You’re right. We can’t say here. If Victor finds us, he’ll bring violence against your family. As soon as we find Ben, we’ll leave. I couldn’t…I couldn’t stand it if something happened to Drew or Kaitlyn or the kids.”
Or you.
His fingers tightened around her upper arms. A steely glint sparked in his eyes. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”
“It’s not your problem. I can’t let you?—”
He dipped his face closer. “I’m making it my problem.” His voice came out low and raspy.
“What about your family?” She tried one last time, but he was immovable.
“They’d say the same thing. We may not be blood, but McGraws don’t run from outlaws.”
Chapter 11
Afaint cry broke through the stillness, severing the connection between them. Isaac let go of Clare and turned his head, one direction, then another. Where had the sound come from?
“Ben!” he yelled, his voice growing rougher with each call.
From this higher vantage point, they could see the steep, rocky drops on each side of the river. Over the roar of the water came another faint cry. He stopped short and held out his arm to keep Clare from going too near the cliff’s edge. He could see Quade’s work across the river. His men had dug a wide swath, inching closer to diverting the water. But this was not the time to think about that.
They walked farther, and Isaac couldn’t keep his mind from swinging between the current problem of locating Ben and everything Clare had revealed in the past hour as they’d searched for the boy. It was clear that Nick had guessed right. She’d left behind a life of violence and criminal activity. It had taken a strong will to see through the lies her pa and brothers had told her about what was right and wrong. She’d made her choice and run away.
But the compassion he felt for what she’d been through didn’t explain his conflicted feelings about whether he should follow through with his decision from last night—whether he should send her away.
No, it was the twist in his gut when she’d explained about the young man she’d fallen in love with that left Isaac unsettled.
Clare had snuck under his walls. He’d started to care about her. And those boys. That’s why her deception had stung so badly.
If he opened his heart fully to them and he couldn’t keep them safe…
Isaac scanned the area ahead, taking in the dark clouds, churning and forming fast. Clare leaned over the cliff’s edge and gasped.
Isaac peered down the precipice. His heart twisted. Ben lay on a narrow ledge, unmoving. His leg was turned at an ugly angle. Earlier, they’d heard his cries, but now there was only the sound of the wind picking up, whistling sharply through the canyon. Had he fallen unconscious?
The shallow rise and fall of Ben’s chest shot relief through Isaac. He dropped to his belly, his head and shoulders hanging over the edge. Clare followed his lead, lowering herself beside him.
“He’s breathing,” Clare said.
“Isaac?” Ben whimpered. His eyes opened.
Clare rolled to her elbows. “I’ve got to get down there.”
“Not a chance. It’s a challenging climb in any circumstances. But in skirts? Go back to the homestead. You can lead my brothers here faster. We need a horse, and bring some rope and bandages.”
She shook her head. “I can’t leave him.” She pinned her lips in a firm line.
“Then see if you can find some sticks for a splint. Sturdy ones.”
She frowned but did as he asked, leaving Isaac to assess the cliffside and the distance between him and Ben.
Ben groaned. His tiny perch was barely wider than a water trough. If he rolled one way, he’d fall into a crevice. But if he rolled the other way? Well, it was a steep drop for a kid with a broken leg.
“Ben, just stay real still. All right?”
