One of the mules squealed, and Abel's body plunged toward him. Something hard struck the side of Aaron's head.
The pain registered first. Then the blackness.
And nothing else.
CHAPTER9
"Settle down, Sarah. Everything is all right." Katie adjusted her daughter so she would finally stop fussing and nurse.
Everythingwasall right. Surely.
But why hadn't Aaron returned yet? She'd dozed after Sarah went to sleep, though she hadn't meant to. She'd only awakened because her daughter fussed.
The mush he'd left heating by the fire had scorched, its aroma tainting the smell of wood smoke to something sour.
If Aaron had returned while she slept, he would have pulled the food away from the fire. She had no doubt about that.
She must have been asleep an hour at least, maybe longer. Did he need help out there? He'd said he would try to find grazing too, so perhaps he’d had to take the mules a long way. Or perchance he was disassembling the contents of the wagon to find items to make this cabin more livable.
Or maybe something awful had happened. Possibly he'd slipped in the ice again and really had broken his leg this time.
She had to go out and find him. But Sarah also needed to eat, and she wouldn't be stalled much longer. Maybe half the length of a normal feeding would suffice until they found Aaron.
Every minute Sarah nursed made Katie’s body coil tighter. Even the little one squirmed, though she ate with hungry determination. This babe had connected so easily with Aaron, perhaps she sensed something was wrong with him.
That was a silly thought, of course, but they had to go find him. Maybe she could wrap blankets around the two of them and let Sarah continue nursing while she walked.
Once she’d done that and had the two of them as warm as she could manage, she pushed open the door and stepped out into the whipping wind. Barney followed her, staying behind in her tracks.
The wagon stood where they'd left it, the thick layer of snow that covered it undisturbed. The wind had blown snow into Aaron’s tracks, but she could still make out each dip where he'd broken through the high powder.
As soon as she rounded the rear of the cabin, the two mules came into view. The pair stood near each other, heads down in the snow. One of them pawed the ground. Maybe they'd found grazing.
As she started toward them, she raised her voice to call out. "Aaron?"
The sound echoed over the open space, and the mules lifted their heads. One of them brayed—Abel, maybe? He wasn't quite as stout as the more energetic brother. His call pierced the air, resounding as her voice had.
In its wake, an eerie silence settled. Even the wind had ceased.
Her feet crunched in the snow, and her dress plowed through the white as she lifted each leg high and kicked the fabric forward. Her stockings were already wet, and the cold was seeping down into her boots.
Aaron might have frostbite, as long as he’d been out here.
He hadn't answered her call, and she glanced around in every direction as she walked. "Aaron? Where are you?"
The wind picked up again, whistling in her ears. Sarah stirred at her chest, and she adjusted the babe as she kept her forward march.
All she could think to do was follow Aaron’s tracks, though out here, the wind had filled them even more than by the cabin.
As she neared the mules, a dark spot to the side snagged her attention.
No!
She raised her knees higher to run toward the form, even as a cry welled in her throat.No!
Aaron lay in the snow, his body motionless. Was that…? Crimson smeared the white near his head.
When she reached him, his eyes were open but his body motionless. Emotion clogged her chest so much she couldn't breathe. Was he dead? Flashes came of Neil’s blank expression as he lay in a pool of blood, his eyes open and lifeless.
