Page 30 of The Promise
Michael smiled. "Do I have a wife?"
She nodded mutely, waiting.
"No, Cara, I don't. I was speaking of my father and brother."
She exhaled in relief, surprised to find that she'd been holding her breath. "What about your mother?"
Cara watched as a parade of emotions washed across his face, anger, hurt, and then finally a cold mask that effectively shut her out. "She's gone."
"Gone?"
"She abandoned us." There was a finality to his voice that made her swallow her curiosity. Whatever his mother had done, it was still painful for Michael to talk about.
"Okay, so you were riding line," she said, moving them back to the topic at hand.
"Right. I'd been at it all day, checking stock and making sure our fences weren't down. I'd finished with the high pastures, so just after sunset, I decided to head back. By the time I got to the main road it was dark. The moon hadn't risen yet, so it was hard to make out anything. I could see lights from Clune in the distance, but it was still a good ways off."
He paused, frowning at the memory. "The shot came from somewhere off to my left. I couldn't see a thing and I figured it was best to get the hell out of there."
"Why didn't you ride home?"
"There was nothing between me and the ranch but bare ground. I needed cover and I knew if I could make the trees I had a chance."
"So you hoped you'd lose your assailant?" She'd never actually used the word assailant in conversation before. It made her feel queasy to think that someone had actually been trying to kill him.
"Right, or least keep him well behind me. Unfortunately, I hadn't gambled on how badly I was hurt. It was slow going and I could hear him behind me. I knew it wouldn't be long before he caught up with me. So, finally, I jumped off Roscoe."
"Roscoe?"
"My horse." He shrugged. "I figured the man trailing me would follow Roscoe back down the mountain. Or see that his saddle was empty and assume I was dead."
Cara shivered again.
"I knew I was close to the old tunnel, and if I could just make it there, I was pretty certain, he wouldn't be able to find me even if he came back. So I waited until I heard him go after Roscoe, and then managed to crawl inside. You pretty much know the rest."
She nodded, her teeth worrying the soft inside of her lower lip. "And you don't have any idea who's trying to kill you?"
"None at all. Could have been a road agent. I can't think of any enemies. Truth of it is, there's no way to know—especially now." He grimaced, and again she realized just how difficult this must be for him.
"Your family must be worried sick."
"I'm not certain my father will be sober enough to know I'm missing." Sharp-edged bitterness colored his voice.
"But your brother?"
"He'll think I'm dead."
"Maybe not. Maybe…" she trailed off, wishing she knew what to say.
He shook his head. "It's rough out there, and I was supposed to be back by nightfall. Patrick knows I'd never break my word—unless I had no choice."
"Well, maybe there's some way to get you back." She was surprised how much the thought upset her. She'd just found him. The idea of letting him vanish from her life again, was not appealing, but she had to think of his needs first.
"How?" The single word sounded so hopeless it brought tears to her eyes. "Cara, we don't even know for certain how I got here."
She swallowed her emotions. This was not the time. She had to be strong, to think clearly. "Well, we can be fairly sure it has to do with the mine tunnel where you found me."
"True, but it has to be something more than that. We've both been in it numerous times and not a damn thing has happened." There was an edge to his voice, a note of desperation.
