Love on the Horizon (A Northern Woods Novel) (3 page)

Thirty minutes later, he looked
up at his mommy. She was sleeping, so he decided to let her rest. He slipped on
his jacket, pulled up the zipper, and whispered for Lucky to come to the door.
Lucky followed him out onto the porch. “Let’s go find Daddy, Lucky, so we can
help him be a cowboy.”

* * *

Nick had another long day. He and
four of his men had been out checking the barbed wire fencing and made any
needed repairs before the first snowfall arrived. They’d have to be prepared
for winter by mid-October.

Another hour and the sun would be
down. He stepped into the house and removed his boots at the door. When he
entered the kitchen, he noticed how quiet it was, and wondered what his wife
and son were doing. He walked through the dining area and into the living room
when he noticed Mariah, asleep on the sofa. He walked over to her and gently
tapped her shoulder.

“Honey, are you okay?”

Mariah slowly opened her tired
eyes with a smile, and he helped her sit up. She stared at the Legos spread out
on the carpet and remembered that Nicky had been sitting on the floor with
Lucky.

“Where’s Nicky?” he asked.

“He was right here, building a
doghouse for Lucky.” She looked around the room. “They must be in his bedroom.”

“Nicky, daddy’s home,” he called
out. When there was no answer, he went to find him. “Nicky, come out, come out,
wherever you are,” he sang, but still no answer.

Mariah stood up and walked down
the hallway to check the bathroom.

They searched the house and
couldn’t find the boy, or his dog. Nick pulled his boots back on, took off like
a bolt of lightning and ran to the stable. The men had been getting ready to
head home when he came toward them.

“Has anyone seen Nicky and
Lucky?”

“Aren’t they in the house with
Mariah?” Art asked.

“There’s no sign of them. Would
you guys mind staying for a bit longer and help us search for them?” he asked,
with a look of panic.

After they’d checked the stable,
in the stalls, and around every square foot of the barn, they saddled their
horses and headed out to the pasture.

Four of the men left with Nick
and headed south, while the other four rode to the north with Art.

They approached Art’s cottage
first, in hopes that they’d discover the boy had stopped by for a visit. There
have been times when Nicky would come over to visit with Lillie.

Art opened his front door and
called out for Nicky, then for Lucky.

The only sound he heard was when
the furnace kicked in.

He ran back outside and left the
door unlocked, in case they show up. He shouted for the men to head off in
different directions, and to yell for both Nicky and Lucky. “The dog will bark
if he hears their names being called.”

He slid into his saddle and
headed north along the edge of the woods. It would be dark soon. They all
carried flashlights and medical kits in case of emergency. He couldn’t have
gotten very far on those short little legs, Art thought. He rode along the
woods and called out loudly. “Nicky! … Lucky!”

Nick asked Mariah to stay at the
house in hopes that they’d return. He brought his cell phone with him and told
her to call him if they happen to show up.

Lucky knows the way home, and
he’d never leave Nicky’s side. Mariah stood out on the porch and yelled for
them until she lost her voice. The sun was going down quickly along the
horizon. It would be dark soon. She sat down on the porch, held her face in her
hands and cried her heart out.

“This is my fault,” she sobbed. “Please
Lord, please lead my baby back home safely.”

Chapter Five

Nicky looked at his dog, and his
cheeks were wet from crying. He wept aloud and wrapped his arms around Lucky’s
neck. Lucky licked the tears from his face.

“I’m cold, Lucky. Where’s my
daddy?” He looked around, not knowing which way to go. His little teeth were
chattering, and he clung to Lucky with fear in his eyes. It was growing dark,
and he had no idea where they were.

He walked a few steps ahead and
spotted a huge wagon piled with hay. Lucky barked at him and ran toward the
wagon. He turned around and barked again. Nicky moved next to him and Lucky
jumped onto the wagon and continued to bark. Nicky walked up to it and tried to
climb, however, it was too high for him. He stood and cried. Lucky moved over
to the side of the wagon and again began to bark.

The dog acted very excited when
Nicky noticed the wheel of the wagon. He put his foot on the wooden spokes and
held onto the edge tightly. Lucky grabbed hold of the sleeve of his jacket and
backed up slowly while Nicky swung his leg over the edge. With a smile on his
face, he gave Lucky a big hug. Lucky led him to a pile of hay and acted as
though he wanted Nicky to play with him. When Nicky crawled over to him, Lucky
snuggled up and pushed him gently into the small stack. Lucky placed his head
across his tiny body to help keep him warm. Nicky was very tired and fell into
a comfortable sleep, while Lucky remained still, his eyes and ears alert as he
protected his little master.      

* * *

Nick drove his jeep to the end of
his driveway and turned onto the road that led to his neighbor’s property, one
mile south. When he approached the dwelling, the security lights came on, which
enabled him to search the area carefully. His neighbor hired him to take care
of the grounds when she moved to New Mexico.

He quickly searched the acreage
and found no sign of his son or his dog. He cut across the meadow, while he
carefully shone the spotlight ahead of the Jeep and off to the side, giving him
a bright, open view. He spotted Garrett driving slowly along the side of the
dirt road.

“Garrett! I’m making a stop at
the house to check on Mariah. Meet me at the stable in ten minutes and we’ll
both head out on horseback.”

“Okay boss, I’ll have the horses
waiting. Kim just arrived. She’s in the house with Mariah.”

“Thanks, I’ll be right back.”

When Garrett Johnson had come
looking for work, Nick had known him to be the best horse whisperer in
Brockenridge County. Nick hired him on the spot. He and his wife Kim have a
house in the city of Huntington, about twenty miles west of Pinewood Hills.

He hurried in to check on Mariah
and found her in the living room, rocking back and forth, in a deep trance. She
was staring out the window and didn’t respond to him. He softly called her
name. Kim approached from the kitchen carrying two cups of coffee and handed
one to Nick.

“She’ll be okay. She was sitting
on the porch when I arrived. We talked for a bit, and then I led her into the
house. I gave her a mild sedative. She’ll be fine.”

Mariah noticed him standing next
to her, and she smiled when he knelt down beside her. He kissed her on the
cheek and placed an afghan across her lap.

“We’ll find him, honey, don’t
worry. Everyone is out searching. Lucky will take good care of him, you know
that don’t you?” She nodded with a faint smile. “I’m going back out now. You
sit and have a nice visit with Kim. I’ll be home as soon as we locate him.

“Thanks Kim, I appreciate your
coming by.”

“No problem,” she said with a
look of concern. “We’ll be fine, don’t worry. I’ll keep her safe.”

He nodded, then placed his
Stetson on his head and hurried out to the stable where Garrett waited
patiently, the horses saddled and ready to go.

* * *

After the men had been searching
for a couple of hours and still hadn’t found Nicky, Art phoned the Pinewood
Hills Police Department. They arrived at the Colburn Stables Ranch within ten
minutes, and the Huntington Police Department appeared soon after, bringing
with them a search and rescue police dog. With four hundred acres of land to
cover, they knew it might lead to a long night.

When Kim convinced Mariah to take
a nap, she began working in the kitchen, making sandwiches and coffee for the
men. It was becoming very late, and a few of them would stop in for a break now
and then, to grab a bite to eat. She made sure there was enough food and coffee
ready for them at all times. Many nearby neighbors joined in the search, along
with volunteers from Huntington. The late-night news showed a recent picture of
Nicky, with his age and description.

At four a.m., Nick appeared in
the doorway. The look on his face told Kim that he had no good word yet. She
sat him down at the table and poured him a cup of coffee.

“Is Mariah sleeping?” he asked
quietly.

“I gave her another sedative
around two a.m., and she fell into a deep sleep soon after.”

“Will that be safe for her? I’m
assuming you know that she’s expecting?”

“Yes, I’m aware of that. Don’t
worry, Nick. It’s only a mild sedative; Chamomile is one of the gentlest herbal
sleep aids, and safe for pregnant women.”

“Thank you so much, Kim. I don’t
know what I would have done if Garrett hadn’t been able to reach you.”

“I’ve been working the graveyard
shift this week, and luckily, I have tonight and tomorrow night off.” Kim was a
nurse at the Huntington Urgent Care Center.

After a couple bites of his
sandwich, Nick pushed his chair from the table and stood. “Thanks for the
sandwich, Kim, and for all of your help with Mariah. The men helping with the
search also appreciate the food ready for them when needed.” He grabbed his
Stetson from the shelf by the door.

“I wish you luck,” she said. “I
hope you’ll be back with good news soon.”

He only nodded, stepped out the
door and headed for the stable. Garrett would have a fresh horse ready and
waiting.

* * *

The girls had been hiking through
the woods for about an hour when they finally decided to stop and rest. Angie,
Patti and Sherri sat down on a log that blocked the pathway.

“This tree trunk looks as though
it fell recently,” Angie said. “It must have come down in last week’s storm. I
heard that it hit pretty hard here in Pinewood Hills.”

They each grabbed a bottle of
water from their backpacks, along with the box of cheese crackers Patti pulled
from hers. The sun had begun to warm the early morning chill, as it slowly
worked its way through the tree branches.

“Isn’t this beautiful,” Sherri
said, and took a deep breath of fresh air. “I’m glad we decided to take this
trail. A creek runs near here. Should we see if we’re able to find it? I heard
Maggie talking about it to a customer last week.” Maggie is Sherri’s sister,
who now owns the Pinewood Hills Country Market & Cafe, located along the
county road, one mile south of Pinewood Hills.

“Okay, after we’ve finished our
snack. Starting our hike at six a.m. may be beautiful, but I’m hungry,” Patti
said, and shoved a few cheese crackers into her mouth with a grin.

Patti suddenly looked at Angie.
With a frightened expression on her face, she whispered, “Did you hear that?”

“What?” she asked, and placed
some loose hair behind her ear.

“Shhh, listen.”

They all heard a soft,
low-pitched growl off to the east, through the pine trees located along the
edge of the trail.

“Oh my God,” Patti said quietly.
“I hope it’s not a bear. Maybe it caught the scent of our crackers, or perhaps
us. I told you we shouldn’t have come into the woods this early in the
morning.”

Angie stood and crept slowly
toward the pine trees.

“Angie, don’t go over there,”
Patti whispered, “it might attack you.”

Angie pulled her flashlight from
her jacket pocket, and swept a ray of light in the direction the noise came
from. She noticed a slight movement and directed the beam to what appeared to
be a wagon filled with hay. She heard another low growl, and then she saw a
little boy, as he pushed himself to a sitting position and rubbed his eyes. He
glanced directly into the bright glow of the flashlight and sat with his thumb
in his mouth, while tears flowed down his cheeks. He looked very frightened,
and his dog remained in front of him protectively.

Chapter
Six

“Hi sweetheart,” Angie said
softly, “are you lost?” Lucky protectively backed up closer to Nicky. “I won’t
hurt you, honey. What’s your name?”

He removed his thumb from his
mouth and answered, “Nicky Colburn.”

“Oh, your father owns the Colburn
Stables Ranch. How did you get this far from home?”

“I wanted to find my daddy so I
could help him be a cowboy,” he said, and more teardrops ran down his cheeks.

Patti and Sherri quietly walked
up behind Angie and overheard him.

“Oh my God Angie, I heard about
this on the news last night. We have to call the police. Around five o’clock
yesterday afternoon was when they realized he was missing,” Sherri said.

“Honey could you let your dog
know that we’re nice people? We won’t hurt you.” She turned around and pointed
at Sherri. “Sherri will call the police department on her cell phone. She’ll
tell them where we are, and they’ll find us and bring you and your buddy back
home.”