Page 48 of A Chance at Forever
“He usually comes on Saturdays,” Riley commented. They paused next to Lady Bug’s stall. “Well, here she is.”
The moment Victoria stroked Lady Bug’s velvet nose, she tossed her mane and whinnied a greeting. “Are you happy to see me, girl? It’s been two months, but I promise I won’t stay away so long next time.”
Riley saddled Lady Bug and handed the reins to Victoria. “She’s been skittish lately so be careful.”
“I will.” Victoria whistled for Bud and urged Lady Bug into a slow trot.
Higher in the mountains, the chilly, pine-scented air refreshed Victoria’s spirit as she sorted through her confusion. She didn’t regret her decision to trust Rusty. He defined the wordgentleman. He never demanded anything from her except honest friendship.
Could she give him more than that?
A sudden rush of fear, fear she would lose her career and Rusty if the sex video of her and Alan ever became public, caused her to lose focus. A bed of leaves crunched noisily beneath Lady Bug’s hooves before Bud’s sharp barks of warning scared the horse. Lady Bug reared in fright, throwing Victoria from her back. Victoria’s head struck a hidden rock as Lady Bug bolted. A biting pain traveled up her leg. Before she lost consciousness, she heard a telltale rattle and Bud’s low, menacing growls. Darkness crept into the edges of her vision. The world faded away.
*
Not knowing Victoria’swhereabouts on Saturday worried Rusty, but they hadn’t made any plans nor did she owe him an account of her comings and goings. Needing to clear his head after sharing that spectacular kiss with her last night, he headed up to Riley’s ranch to go horseback riding. He feared he’d pushed Victoria too hard and wanted too much too soon.
As he saddled Thunder, his favorite mount, Rusty berated himself for being so foolish. But that kiss, the sweetest kiss he’d ever known, haunted him. Hoping to banish it from his mind, he swung aloft and started in surprise when Lady Bug appeared like a phantom without her rider.
Shading his eyes, he called out to a nearby ranch hand, “Isn’t that Lady Bug?”
The young man nodded and exclaimed, “Yeah! And she’s back without Ms. Lockridge!”
Even before the ranch hand finished speaking, Rusty dug his heels into Thunder and galloped toward the mountains.
He heard Bud’s familiar barks a few minutes later. The dog bounded into his view, and Rusty whistled for him. Bud danced around Thunder, barking excitedly and rushing forward into the trees and back again, urging Rusty to follow him.
When he found Victoria lying unconscious next to a dead rattlesnake, Rusty’s heart plummeted into his stomach. He leaped off Thunder’s back and called 911 as he assessed the situation. Her pale skin and blood-soaked hair and jeans frightened him, but he remained calm.
“911, what is your emergency?”
“This is Rusty Sinclair. I’m up in the mountains above Riley Nelson’s ranch. A rattlesnake has bitten Victoria Lockridge. It looks like she hit her head on a rock after being thrown from her horse, and she’s unconscious. I’m removing her boot as we speak. I think her right ankle is either broken or sprained. Should I cut her and suck out the venom?”
“No, Mr. Sinclair. Help is on the way. Can you get her to Mr. Nelson’s ranch?”
“Yes, yes, I can.”
“Good. Do your best to keep the wound below Ms. Lockridge’s heart. ETA is fifteen minutes.”
Lifting her into his strong arms, Rusty murmured, “Stay with me, Tori. I’ve got you. I’m not going to let you die, my love.” He mounted Thunder with some effort and urged the horse into a fast gallop.
Hearing the sirens in the distance relieved Rusty as he reached the ranch. Within moments, he reined up next to a fire and rescue truck. EMTs took Victoria from his arms and laid her on a flat board. Working efficiently, they evaluated her condition and loaded her into the back of the truck.
“She’s in shock,” one said. “Let’s get that IV started.”
Bud whined and tried to leap inside with his mistress. Rusty held him back with a firm hand. “Go,” he ordered the EMTs. “We’ll be right behind you.”
On the way to the hospital, Rusty prayed and railed at not being in the rescue truck with Victoria. Bud sat up straight in the seat and never took his eyes off the road ahead, even when they lost sight of the EMTs. Rusty hoped he had reached her in time. And as the thought entered his mind, he tamped down the sudden burst of emotion swelling in him.
When they arrived at Marysville General Hospital minutes after the EMTs, Rusty and Bud rushed into the ER. He’d never felt as helpless as he did now with Victoria in a cubicle, fighting for her life. He didn’t need to be told how quickly the venom had spread through her system.
Unable to be with Victoria, Rusty called Mia and explained what happened.
“Oh, no!” she cried. “I’ll call Jonica and we’ll be right there.”
Rusty sat in an uncomfortable waiting room chair with his head bowed and cupped between his hands. Bud lay at his feet and let out a whine every now and then. None of the hospital personnel reprimanded Rusty for bringing the dog into the ER. Everyone knew and loved Bud, especially after he’d been shot. The culprits had yet to be identified.
When his friends arrived, they hugged Rusty and asked if there’d been any news. He shook his head. “No, not yet.”
