Page 9 of Montana Freedom

The line went dead, and I focused everything on driving. She was moving and breathing, but barely. I reached over and pressed my fingers to her pulse, just under her jaw, and my gut tightened. It was way too fast.

Waytoo fucking fast.

The mission was still in the forefront of my mind, but I couldn’t fully ignore the growing terror in my gut. She couldn’t die. Shecouldn’tdie. I couldn’t have one more person who’d been locked in a cage die because I hadn’t done enough.

Fuck, maybe I should turn around and take her to the hospital anyway.

By all rights, I probably should have done that to begin with. But my instincts said to trust her when she said she couldn’t go there. Given my history, I found it hard to trust those instincts now, but I clenched my teeth and pressed down on the accelerator.

The smallest whimper came from the passenger side, and I glanced away from the road only to make sure she was still breathing and wasn’t about to fall off the seat. “Almost there,” I told her. “Hang on. We’re going to take care of you. Promise.”

In my gut, I hoped it was a promise I would be able to keep. If it wasn’t, I would live with that statement for the rest of my life.

The walls of Resting Warrior came into view, and I barely slowed turning through the open gate. Another truck pulled in behind me on the road down to the cabins. Noah’s truck. I saw both him and Kate in the rearview mirror. Liam must have called them.

I didn’t bother to park well. Just as close to the stairs as possible.

Noah jumped out of his truck, and I tossed him the keys. “Take Liam,” I called. “When he gets out here. Go for the car.”

“What the hell is going on?” he asked, snatching the keys out of the air.

I ignored him, circling my own truck and yanking the passenger door open. The seat belt had kept her in place, but she’d slid a little, leaning forward off the bench. I tried to be gentle as I freed her and lifted her out of the passenger seat. The door to the cabin behind me opened.

“It’s ready,” Liam said, and I didn’t look at anyone else as I carried her inside.

She was here.

I still wasn’t fully comprehending the fact that it was her and somehow the world had put her in my path at exactly the right moment. “Is Dr. Gold coming?”

“She is,” Liam called from behind me. “She wasn’t at the hospital, so she’ll be here shortly. Wasn’t exactly pleased to be summoned, but I told her what you said.”

The bed was made but turned down, and I laid her down on it. She was too hot to cover her with the blankets, and Dr. Gold needed access to her anyway.

Those of us who lived and worked here essentially considered Dr. Goldourdoctor. She’d been there through most of our trials, and she was less than surprised now when one of our large family appeared with some kind of injury. After Evelyn, almost nothing was a shock.

My medical training was limited, but I knew enough to take her vitals so I could give them to the doctor when she arrived. I started with her temperature.

One hundred and four. Fuck.

“Oh my god.” Kate’s voice sounded from behind me. “It’s her.”

“Who?” Noah asked.

“The woman who was in the cages with me.”

“No,” Liam said. “Really?”

He would understand why I was panicking after what I’d told him the other day. Kate, too, had wondered about this woman’s well-being. We’d spoken about it several times. Though I didn’t think Noah’s girlfriend had this woman starring in her nightmares with the same regularity.

Pulse nearly 140. She was in a bad state.

“Why didn’t you take her to the hospital, Daniel?” Noah asked.

“I tried.” I stood, running a hand through my hair. “While barely conscious, she tried tofight meto keep from going. After what we pulled her out of, I thought there might be a good reason she didn’t want to go.”

He didn’t look sure, and I wasn’t either, but now wasn’t the time to voice my own doubts.

“Get the car,” I said. “I’ll wait for the doctor, and we’ll talk about it when you get back.”

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