Ridge nodded. Helplessness took firm hold of him. Panic crawled over his spine. They were miles from nowhere and India desperately needed a doctor.
“What are you doing here?” Robby demanded, rising to stand by his father.
To Ridge’s surprise, the earl threw his arms around Robby and held him tightly.
“My God, I prayed I wasn’t too late.”
The earl’s voice broke half way through, and Ridge could swear his father was weeping.
Gently, Ridge turned India over and swept his fingers over the back of her shoulder. It came away dry. No holes or tears were evident in her shirt. Which meant the ball was still in her shoulder.
He closed his eyes and swore under his breath. What could he do?
His father knelt down beside him, his eyes swollen and puffy. “I have much to say to both of you, but first we must tend to this young lady. I owe her much. She saved my son’s life.”
“You saw?” Ridge asked in surprise.
The earl flinched. “It was the worst moment of my life. I could see you from the crevice, but I was wedged so tightly, I couldn’t move in time. I’ve never felt so helpless in my life.”
The earl looked down at India. “She is a brave woman.”
“I can’t lose her,” Ridge whispered.
The earl clapped a hand on Ridge’s shoulder. “And so we won’t.” He hesitated a moment then said, “We must get her to Pagoria.”
Ridge looked at his father in confusion. “What is it you aren’t telling me, Father? How did you find us here, and how do you know about the city?”
His father dug a hand into his hair, and suddenly he looked every bit his age. The lines in his face seemed etched in stone, and the gray at his temples had spread liberally through his hair.
“My father is there, and he is a trained physician.”
Both Robby and Ridge stared at their father as if he had grown a second head. Ridge struggled to comprehend the magnitude of what the earl had said.
The earl’s father? Ridge’s grandfather? He had died years ago. Or so he had been told. Had his father truly lied about something likethat?
He glanced down at India and applied more pressure to her shoulder. Then he gathered her in his arms, cradling her closely, protectively to him. He stood then leveled a look at his father. “You have much explaining to do, but you’ll have to do it on the way. I can’t take chances with India bleeding the way she is.”
Robby strode to where Mrs. Unster’s body lay and gingerly removed the bracelet from her fingers. “We’ll have need of this.” He stuffed it into his pocket and returned to stand by Ridge. “She said the doorway stands in the cradle of the moon, and that is the only moon I see,” he said, pointing at the stone face of Mount Orion. “So let’s start walking.”
“Son, are you all right?” the earl asked Robby. “How are you feeling?”
For once Robby didn’t hide behind a silly jest or shrug off the question. He looked at their father with the full scope of his grief.
“I don’t have long I fear. And I won’t have India dying before me. If you say there is help in the city, then the city we’ll go to.”
The earl wrapped an arm around Robby and began walking toward the mountain.
“Let me help you, son. And I’ll explain everything to you and Ridge.”
Ridge gripped India tighter in his arms and made to follow his brother and father. He glanced down at her face, so still and calm. So peaceful looking.
“Don’t go, my love,” he whispered. “I need you.”
He stumbled toward the mountain, his heart aching with each step. His father slowed until Ridge drew abreast of him and Robby.
“I have much to beg your forgiveness for,” the earl said in a tone heavy with regret. “I want you both to know that I love you, and that I’ve made mistakes. I can only pray you will find it in your heart to look past an old man’s foolishness.”
Ridge and Robby exchanged astonished looks.
