Stone Cold Charade (A Stone Family Novel) (24 page)

“Hello Stardust, want to catch some bad guys?”
Alex encouraged.

Stardust tossed his head as if he knew they
were going on an adventure.

Retrieving Stardust’s saddle from the tack
room, she listened to Ty and his men on the radio to get their location. Though
they had the rustlers surrounded, they were waiting until the rustlers finished
loading the cattle into the trailers before calling in the sheriffs men. After
positioning themselves in various locations along the dirt road the rustlers
had used to reach the north pasture, they stood by, waiting for Ty’s signal
before moving in to make the arrests. Ty planned to have Tennessee and Ridge
disable their tires so they wouldn’t be able to escape unless on foot.

Saddling Stardust, Alex had about twenty
minutes to reach the area. She would have to be in position before they took
action. Placing the rifle in the scabbard attached to her saddle, she led
Stardust out of the barn. The moon was at its highest point in the sky,
illuminating the night; it was so bright even the stars had trouble penetrating
its glow. Stardust’s white coat seemed to shimmer. Alex waited for her eyes to
adjust. Making out the shapes in the night, she swung into the saddle. He
raised himself up on his hind legs and sped toward the edge of the paddock,
jumping the fence at a dead run. Riding full out, she gave him his lead. They
would make good time; Stardust’s sire was a champion racehorse and he had never
let her down before.

When she caught the glow of headlights, she
finally rained Stardust in. The lights in the distance came from the other side
of a small rise about three hundred yards away. Tying him to a fallen tree she
removed the rifle from her saddle before gliding through the brush in the
direction of Ty and the rustlers.

As she climbed the rise, she scanned the area
which dropped into a small canyon where they were positioned. The distance from
the ledge where Alex was crouched to the valley floor was no more than a
hundred yards. Finding a sturdy oak tree a few feet from the edge, she clamored
up it to get a bird’s eye view. Retrieving Parry’s night goggles from around
her neck, she placed them on her head to get a better lay out. Adjusting the
magnification she scanned the area below, she made out the rustlers through the
lenses as the goggles seemed to light up the night. They had two trucks with
cattle trailers hooked up to them and were herding the cattle into the trailers
with quads. Frustratingly, she couldn’t make out Ty or his men.

She pushed the night vision goggles to the top
of her head and brought the rifle up, using the scope to see if she could spot
Ty or Ridge. She looked along the northern slope where they had discussed
setting up during their last transmission. Making out two men lying in heavy
cover to watch the rustlers, she swept the scope along the brush line where
Tennessee was supposed to be. She caught sight of him as he moved into
position, getting the best angle lined up for when he needed to fire his rifle.
The rustlers were starting to close the trailers up. It appeared as if the men
on quads were going to drive out with the trucks. She could hear the
frustration in Ty’s voice as he communicated with his men, and quickly grasped
they were not loading up the quads. He had not counted on them driving out. He
had expected the rustlers to load them onto trailers.

Knowing they couldn’t hit all the tires on the
various rigs, Ty instructed them to take out the trucks.

“We’ll have to leave the quads to the sheriff’s
boys.”

Alex raised the rifle up and waited for Ty's
signal.

“Take the shot,” he said in Alex’s ear.

The rustlers were on the farthest side of the
pasture making her shot nearly two hundred yards. She knew she could make it.
Without thinking, she reacted. She fired, hitting the first quad’s tire and
moved quickly to fire off another round at the next.

“What the…!” Ty exclaimed, thinking Tennessee
had broken orders and taken out the quads instead of the trucks.

“My gun jammed boss,” Tennessee said tensely.

“Then who’s shooting at the damn quads?” Ty
asked stunned.

As Alex reloaded she saw the first truck, dead
in the water, the tires blow on the rig and the trailer. She watched as the
driver of the second truck started to pull around the first and make a run for
it. Sighting in on his back tire, she fired and took out the trailer tire as
well.

“Whoever’s shooting sure knows what they’re
doing. Could it be one of the ranch hands?” Ridge asked hesitantly.

“I don’t care who it is as long as they’re on
our side,” Ty said as he watched the second rig fumble to a stop.

Reloading again while scanning the area, Alex
kept her focus on the doors of the cabs in case the rustlers tried to make a
run for it.

“Call in the back up, Tennessee,” Ty said
gruffly.

“Ty they’re going to make a break for it,”
Ridge warned.

Alex switched on her mike saying, “Take the
ones on the north, I’ll take the south.” She moved quickly, steadying her rifle
preparing to fire. She aimed at the engine of the rig and squeezed one off just
as the man opened his door. Steam exploded out of the engine and the man
slammed his door shut thinking it safer to be in the cab. Alex could see Ridge had
followed her lead and blown the engine on the other truck. The men on the quads
had started to race for the fence line, unwittingly, straight to the officers
that were coming to assist. They all froze as the officers drew down on them.

“Alex, where the hell are you, and where did
you get a radio?” Ty asked flabbergasted.

“Oh, about two hundred yards behind you, to the
east. I’m in a spectacular oak tree. I thought it was such a lovely night, why
not go for a walk?” she said sweetly.

“When I get my hands on you…” Ty said
furiously.

He couldn’t believe she had actually shot out
the tires on the rustler’s rigs.

“Woman, can you shoot! You ever decide you
don’t like me, let me know in advance so I can get a head start,” Ridge said
chuckling. “Ever think about being a sharp shooter?”

“Don’t give her any ideas. Alex, get your butt
down here. Now,” Ty ordered, moving out from under cover and making his way
toward the sheriff and his officers.

She swung the rifle over her shoulder and
started her descent down the tree. As she started toward the ridge, she
listened as Ty talked to the police over the mike. She hadn’t really thought
things through before she’d come out. Now she had to pay the price. She hadn’t
put on her glasses and though she knew she didn’t look like Fire, she didn’t
exactly look like Alex either.

Moving along a steep area that headed down into
the pasture, she tripped causing her feet to lose ground. She cried out in
panic. Pitching forward, she braced her arms in front of her before making
contact with the muddy ground. Her body pivoted, causing her to tumble on her
side down the canyon wall. She struggled desperately to find something to grab
onto, but terrifyingly, she couldn’t. The scenery was a kaleidoscope of colors
as it flew past. Seconds after it had all started, her head struck something
with a crack before the world went pitch black.

Ty was finishing up with the officers when he
heard her foreboding scream. It ricocheted off the canyon walls, freezing the
blood in his veins. Turning toward the sound, he broke into a dead run, Ridge
behind him, following close on his heels. When they reached the edge of the
canyon they automatically split up, Ty to the east and Ridge to the west.

She had been on top of the ridge, had she
fallen from the top? He felt the emotions rising in him, frustration
overwhelmed him from the helplessness he felt. Haunted by the scream resonating
over and over in his mind, he had never felt so desperate, even when his men
had fallen under attack.

Ty had just discovered a possible future with
Alex. He refused to lose her now, not like this. Alex couldn’t be dead; he
wouldn’t let himself consider that. He had to find her, she had to be alive. Ty
began to shout out her name repeatedly, Ridge could be heard doing the same. Dead
silence was all that met their efforts.

“God, let her be alive!”
Ty silently prayed. He
couldn’t handle a world without her in it. Staggered by the hard reality that
all of it meant nothing if she wasn’t safe, nothing.

As he ran through the brush, all he could think
of was Alex lying somewhere in pain, and he couldn’t reach her! As he came
around a bend in the canyon he spotted her. She was crumpled at the bottom of a
hill that led to the top. He ran toward her, saying every prayer he had ever
heard, not even feeling the brush as it scratched at his jeans. Nearing her
still form and seeing her lying there on the cold ground, he felt his legs give
out.

Dropping to her side, he turned her over
gently, terrified he would injure her more if he wasn’t extremely careful with
her motionless form. She was covered in clay, it was caked in her clothes and
her hair, but he could still make out a stream of blood flowing from a gouge in
her right temple. Reaching out with a shaky hand, he gingerly moved her hair
away from her pale face.

“Alex?” he said softly, his voice rusty from
the emotions choking him. He heard Ridge coming up behind him as he felt for
her pulse. He let out a shudder of relief as he felt it beating strong under
his fingertips. He pulled off his jacket, wrapping it around her body for
warmth.

“Ridge, call an ambulance now!” he said,
looking over his shoulder at him before moving Alex slowly into his arms to
keep her warm, using his body heat as best he could.

Ridge saw the look in the Boss’s eyes; he
looked totally stricken. He quickly moved back the way he had come to call for
help.

“Alex? Open your eyes, come on baby, open your
eyes!” he pleaded, rocking her in his arms.

“Alex you have to wake up, you hear me!” he
said, bending to her ear. Ty could feel his heart beat sputter as she started
to come to in his arms. Looking into her eyes, he saw her regain consciousness
and gaze up at him in confusion.

“What happened?” she asked huskily.

She felt dreadful, like a truck had hit her,
twice! And why was he holding her? He looked terrible too!

“You fell, from the top of the canyon,” he said
tensely.

She tried to dislodge his arms so she could
look around but he simply tightened them, refusing to release her. She looked
up at him questioningly. He looked as dazed as she felt.

“Don’t move. Ridge is calling an ambulance, it
should be here shortly.”

“I don’t need an ambulance. I’m fine. If you’d
just give me some space so I can breathe,” she snapped. Raising her hand to her
head, she pressed her fingertips gently along her forehead. Pulling them back
in surprise, she took in the sight of her blood slipping slowly down her
fingers. She suddenly recalled hitting a rock on her way down; the whole
incident was slowly starting to replay in her mind. She had been climbing down
to Ty when she stumbled on an exposed root and fell the last ten feet. She had
slid a few feet before hitting her head on a rock and then everything was blank
until she was looking up into his eyes.

“I only slid about ten feet. I think I hit my
head on a rock. I don’t feel like anything’s broken, I’m just sore.” She tried
to move away again.

Releasing her enough to run his hands down her
arms and legs looking for breaks, he didn’t find any.
Thank God!
he
thought. He grudgingly helped her to her feet as his rig drove into view.

“Alex, are you alright?” Ridge asked, jumping
from the rig as it reached the couple. He looked concerned that she was
standing so soon after taking such a nasty tumble.

“I’m fine just got the wind knocked out of me.
I just feel stupid for being so careless,” she said, holding on to Ty as they
started toward him.

“Is the ambulance coming Ridge?” he inquired
tensely.

“I don’t need an ambulance!” She looked up at
him in horror.

She wasn’t going to the hospital. The press
would smell blood, converging on the ranch like piranhas if they got wind that
one of the Stone Girls had been injured, even mildly.

“Yes, you do. You need to see a doctor about
the head wound you have. You could have a concussion and I’m not taking any
chances,” he lectured, forcefully.

“I can have Dr. Morgan come to the house if
it’ll make you feel better, but I’m not going to the hospital!” she stated
hotly.

She didn’t know what had gotten into him, but
she was not going to let him dictate her life to her. She was still a bit
unsteady from the fall but she wasn’t injured that badly.

Ty wanted her to see a doctor and if she
wouldn’t go to the hospital on her own, he was contemplating tossing her over
his shoulder and locking her in his rig. He would take her then, whether she
liked it or not. Judging from her posture, she was still shaky from the fall.
He didn’t want to argue with her, he just want to drag her back into his arms
where he knew she would be safe. Turning toward Ridge, he could tell he was as
shaken up as he was.