“Forget it. The hill’s unstable.”
“But he can’t get free by himself.” Besides, this was her fault. If she’d held on to the leash, he wouldn’t have gotten away.
And no matter what, she wouldn’t leave him. Cade didn’t know it, but saving dogs helped her deal with the loss of their child, as if by rescuing them, she could alter the past, or make it a little less painful.
“We’ll have to go around and get him from the other side,” Cade said.
“But that could take hours.” The pitiful yips grew louder and tugged at her heart. She couldn’t make him wait that long. She had to get him out now.
And only she could do it. The dog couldn’t get free by himself, and Cade couldn’t climb those rocks with his sling. Besides, she was lighter than Cade and less likely to set off a slide.
His eyes narrowed at hers. “Forget it,” he said, as if reading her mind. “We’re going around.”
“McKenzie,” a voice on his radio called.
“I mean it,” he warned. He swung his PG bag from his good shoulder and pulled out his radio.
She moved closer to the edge of the slide. Cade didn’t want her to cross because he was trying to protect her. But maybe she didn’t need protecting. Maybe she was stronger than he thought.
She glanced back. He’d turned partly away, and she considered the breadth of his shoulders, the lean, muscled line of his legs. It had been easy to lean on Cade, to depend on his knowledge and strength. He was competent and brave, and it felt natural to let him take charge.
But maybe she’d depended on him too much, and that wasn’t fair to him.
She swiveled her gaze back to the rocks. Surely she could do something as simple as rescuing the dog. It couldn’t be that hard to manage. But she needed to move fast, before Cade guessed her intentions and stopped her.
She stepped onto the churned-up slope and immediately slipped on loose gravel.
“Damn it, Jordan!” Cade shouted. “Come back here.”
“I can do this.” Not daring to glance back, she regained her balance and threaded her way through the rocks.
Behind her, Cade swore, and she quickened her pace so he wouldn’t catch her. She really could do this, no matter what he thought. She wasn’t helpless-even if she’d once acted that way.
But soon the rocks jumbled together and she had to resort to climbing. She scaled one large rock, then another, and nearly reconsidered. The sharp stones bit through her thin-soled shoes. Her hands, scraped from her fall, tore more when she grabbed the rough rocks. And her battered knee protested with every step.
And even when she managed to find a level spot of ground between the rocks, the loose soil made it hard to stay upright. She slipped again, sending a stone crashing down the mountain and setting off a small slide.
Her heart pumped hard in her chest. Oh, God. No wonder Cade had warned her not to cross. But no matter what, she couldn’t stop. Dusty depended on her to free him.
Her head low, she pushed aside her doubts and concentrated on inching closer, rock by grueling rock. Climbing up, then down. Sliding, skidding, struggling to stay on her feet, then scaling another boulder. And with every tortured step, the dog’s frantic yips grew louder.
And she was getting hot. The sun beat down on her head and sweat trickled into her eyes. She blinked against the sting, then used the hem of her T-shirt to wipe her forehead. Blood stained the shirt where she’d touched it, and she wiped her raw palms on her jeans.
Breathing hard, she paused and glanced at the dog again. She was closer now and could see him straining to get free. “Hang on,” she called out. “I’m almost there.”
But she still had yards to go. With a sigh, she climbed up another rock. She refused to even think about the long trek back.
“Jordan, stop!” Cade suddenly called.
The urgency in his voice caught her attention and she glanced back. Cade stood yards above her, partway across the slope. “What are you doing?” she demanded. “I said I can get him. Go back.”
“No! Don’t move!”
“Me? You’re the one who shouldn’t be out here.” Not with his injuries. Scowling, she found a foothold on the next rock and pulled herself up.
“Jordan, stop!” he shouted again.
Annoyed now, she paused and glared back. “For God’s sake, Cade, I’m fine. Would you stop being so stubborn and-”
“Don’t turn around! Jordan, please!” The panic in his voice made her freeze. She’d never heard that tone before.
“Good,” he said, his voice tight. “Now straighten up real slow and raise your arms to look big. Don’t let him sense that you’re scared.”
Scared? Of what? What did Cade see? Her nerves tightening, she turned herself slowly forward and scanned the rock slide. The sunlight glinted off the barren landscape. A puff of dust whirled into the air. The dog’s desperate whines grew louder.
Then a movement slightly uphill caught her attention and she turned to look.
And gasped.
A big, tawny cat leaped silently toward her, his powerful muscles bunched under his fur. His ears pricked forward into stalking position, and his silver eyes locked on hers. A few yards above her, he paused, then lowered himself to a crouch.
Fear lodged deep in her throat, tightening the hairs along her nape and damming the breath in her lungs. A mountain lion. One of the fiercest predators in the forest.
And unless she stopped him, he was about to attack.
Chapter 8
His blood thundering, Cade scooped up a rock with his left hand and inched across the slope. Gravel slid under his boots, sending a stone bouncing downhill, and he froze.
He gauged the distance between them, and a sick feeling slid through his gut. He was still too far away to protect her. He had to get within throwing range so he could scare the animal off.
But he had to move quickly. A mountain lion could leap from twenty feet.
His heart ramming hard against his rib cage, he stuffed the stone in his pocket, then scooted silently over a boulder. He wished to hell she had listened to him. Why hadn’t she stayed where she was safe?
And why hadn’t he kept his eye on her? He’d suspected she’d go after that dog. Hadn’t she plunged into the river for the knife? So why had he ignored his instincts and turned his back?
Regret speared his gut, along with a tight lump of dread. He’d screwed up, all right. He’d put her in danger, and now it was up to him to save her.
His gaze locked on the lethal cat, he inched closer. A vision of Jordan being mauled flashed through his mind, and a cold sweat beaded his brow. Damn his injured shoulder! Of all the times for his body to fail him. He wanted to leap over these rocks and rescue her now.
Schooling himself to patience, he scaled another boulder. But then Jordan bent to pick up a rock, and panic rocked his chest. “Don’t bend down!” he urged her. “Stand up tall and look big.”
She looked up at him, her dark eyes flashing with fear. “All right.” Her voice trembled; her terror palpitated in the air.
And if he could sense it, so could the mountain lion.
Which meant that he had to move quickly. His pulse rocketing, he grabbed another stone and climbed closer. “Don’t move,” he urged her. “I’m almost there.”
But then the dog whined again, the mountain lion crept forward, and Jordan threw her rock. It landed wide, and the big cat crouched again, ready to spring.
His heart stopped, and he hurled his rock at the cat. It hit near its paws and the cat looked up.
