[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.She was hot, miserable, despairing.She had thought her existence couldn’t get any worse.And then she saw the rattlesnake slowly winding its way in her direction.Abbie went completely still.She was helpless to do anything except pray that the snake didn’t strike.Lone Eagle and Little Dog rounded up the additional horses they needed to transport the women, while Crooked Snake and Black Cloud bound the captives and got them ready to ride.They forced the struggling females onto the horses and then rode away from the still-smoldering ruins of the ranch house and outbuildings, back to where they’d left the Golden One.Ellie and Caroline were crying as they got what they feared might be their last look at what had been their home.They could see the bodies of the murdered cowhands and were filled with rage and sorrow.Ellie looked at her daughter and gave thanks that she hadn’t been killed.As long as they were alive, there was hope.“It was good that we raided the ranch,” Crooked Snake said to the others, looking over the women they had just taken.He was certain they would bring a high price.“Let us get the Golden One and cover many miles today,” Black Cloud said.He suspected there were more men who worked for the ranch and feared they might try to come after the women once they discovered the ranch had been raided.“You are right,” Little Dog agreed.They picked up their pace on their way to claim their other captive.Lone Eagle was anxious to get back to the Golden One.Although Little Dog had said that he’d made sure she was tightly bound and wouldn’t be able to get away, Lone Eagle wanted to make sure nothing had happened to her while they’d been gone.At the sound of horses coming, Abbie was shocked to find she was almost relieved that the raiding party was back.But she had little time to think about her confusing emotions.Just then the rattlesnake that had curled up under a rock nearby emerged from its hiding place and began to move.The warriors reined in close to the place where the Golden One had been left.Lone Eagle dismounted and went to get her as Black Cloud prepared her horse.There was no time to waste.They had to put as many miles as they could between themselves and the ranch before sundown.Abbie was nervous.She wasn’t sure which one of the warriors would be coming for her.If the one who’d abused her earlier showed up, she wasn’t going to reveal anything about the snake.If the rattler struck him, she would be glad.He deserved that—and more.Only when Abbie saw it was the other warrior coming to get her did she worry about how she could warn him.Fearful of being bitten herself, she didn’t dare make any sudden moves.Instead she called out to him in grunting sounds to alert him as she nodded in the direction of the rattler.Lone Eagle had been concentrating only on getting the Golden One back on her horse as quickly as possible, but he realized something was wrong by the way she was acting as he came upon her.He spotted the snake just as it was about to strike, and in one quick, smooth, accurate move, he drew his knife and threw it, killing the rattler instantly.Abbie’s eyes were wide with amazement as she looked up at the warrior.When the rattlesnake had prepared to strike, she’d feared that one or both of them would be bitten, but he’d killed it with one unerring strike.“You did it,” she gasped, once he’d knelt down beside her and removed her gag.As she was speaking, Little Dog came running over.He had seen the way Lone Eagle had reacted, throwing his knife so quickly, and thought he had thrown it at the captive.When he got close enough, he could see that the Golden One was unharmed and talking, and he was puzzled by Lone Eagle’s actions.“What happened?” he asked.“Rattlesnake,” Lone Eagle told him, pointing it out.Little Dog bent down to pick it up.He was smiling as he tossed the knife back to Lone Eagle and then stood up, holding the nearly severed snake by its tail.He took a step closer to the Golden One and enjoyed the look of fear that showed in her eyes as he waved the rattlesnake close to her.Little Dog’s smile broadened.He walked away, carrying the dead rattler
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]