Page 123 of Set It Right
The thought hit hard enough to steal my breath.
I nudged Dusty forward again, angling toward the ridge proper. If they’d run into trouble, they’d likely have stopped near higher ground.
“Dammit,” I breathed.
We reached the first bend of the north trail, where the path narrowed between rocky outcroppings. Dusty’s ears flicked back and forth, listening. Her nostrils flared, and I suspected she could smell the smoke on the breeze.
“Easy,” I murmured.
Dusty was as calm as they came and sensitive to her rider. Normally, that was a good thing, but my being on edge made her skittish. When a bird burst out of the bush beside us, Dusty startled, shying hard to the left. Her front hooves scrambled on loose gravel.
I grabbed for the horn, but momentum had already taken over. Her hindquarters slid, and my weight shifted wrong.
“Whoa—”
My boot caught the stirrup as she lurched, and there was no stopping my fall.
The ground came up, brutal and unforgiving, air slamming from my lungs as my shoulder hit first. My head snapped back against dirt and rock, and my leg twisted beneath me. For a split second, everything went white.
In pure panic, Dusty bolted in the opposite direction, hooves pounding away.
“Dusty!” I tried to shout, but it came out strangled.
She was gone in seconds. Only when she vanished did I remember my walkie was clipped to her saddle.Dammit.
I rolled onto my side, dragging in a painful breath. My shoulder screamed. My hip wasn’t much better. My leg was—well, I was pretty sure it was fucked.
The sky above me had darkened another shade. For a moment, I lay there, blinking at the first faint star appearing overhead, and thought Zara would have loved how pretty the sky looked right now.
It was the thought of her that cleared my mind enough to realize I couldn’t just lie here. But when I tried to push myself up, hot, bright pain shot from my knee down to my toes. Sweat pricked my forehead, and tears blurred my vision.
This wasn’t good. Thisreallywasn’t good.
I’d move. And soon. I had no other choice. I’d just lie here a little longer, save up my strength, then figure things out.
The sun dipped lower.
Smoke continued rising.
And I lay there.
Just another minute.
Chapter Forty-three
Zara
Zanegavehishorsea dirty look as he backed away. “Never again, Ranger. We’re done.”
Mrs. Keller patted his shoulder and laughed. “You are absolutely adorable. Won’t you and Steven join me for dinner?”
Zane glanced at me. “Are you cool with that? I know we’re supposed to be doing the whole sibling-bonding thing—”
I shooed him off. “Go, go. Have a nice dinner. I’ll just hang out with my boyfriend.”
Mrs. Keller pulled a sympathetic face. “Such a hard job.”
I dusted off my hands, grinning. “It is, but someone has to do it.”
