The buggy swayed dangerously.
Crack!
A scream tore out of Anna’s throat as one wheel shattered, and the buggy tipped.
“Jackson!”
Movement—a flash of a figure—before the vehicle slammed to the ground.
Anna ran, raced,prayed. Rocks bit into the soles of her boots.
The horses, stopped short and trapped from the weight of the harnesses, screamed and reared, their hoofs stomping the ground and making it impossible for her to get close.
She stepped forward. “Jackson!” She dove out of the way, missing a hoof to the temple.
A curse formed on her tongue, when a dull groan reached her ears. Movement where the buggy had hit the ground.
Anna darted around the horses, not caring if the beasts gored her if only she could see Jackson was unharmed.
She found him on his side. Gingerly, she rolled him onto his back to see a nasty cut above his eye.
Unconscious with a blow to the head. And he was so pale. Fear gripped her lungs. “Jackson?”
There was a slight movement of his arm, and he groaned.
Alive.
“Thank God,” she breathed. “Jackson? Can you hear me?” She smoothed the hair from his forehead.
His eyes burst open. He sat up with a jolt, his pupils huge and his hands raised as if to ward off a blow.
She pressed a gentle hand on his shoulder. “Jackson.”
He whipped his head around, his gaze settling on her face.
When his jaw turned to granite.
Anna’s insides twisted.He’s angry at me.
But, no, he wasn’t looking ather.
Jackson stared atthe buggy, lying on its side, the undercarriage exposed.
The perfect angle to view how the axle hadn’t split naturally from use.
Jackson knew saw marks when he’d nearly been done in by them. Not only him.
His raw hands stung—the back and forth of the reins with the horses having damn near worn clean through his gloves. There was a tear in his breeches and a gash across his thigh. His head pounded. The rest of him was hot, injured, and dizzy from his abrupt descent to the ground.
He felt nothing of pain. He wouldn’t feel it. Not until the person responsible was weeping blood from every orifice.
His fingers curled into fists.
Someone had deliberately sabotaged the carriage,with Anna on board.
Who would have gone to such lengths? Had he been the intended target? Had Anna’s investigation into her brother’s disappearance caught the attention of the brothel and gang Roberts had mentioned? Jackson’s chest heaved, his blood rising. Were the bastards close? Waiting to try again if their attempt had failed?
“You’re bleeding,” Anna said, the concern on her face breaking through his murderous fantasies. There was a gentle touch on his arm as she pulled him back in the direction of Grandfellow Hall. “We’ve only gone two miles or so.” Her gaze swept down his figure and hesitated on his injured leg. When she met his eye a second later, there were lines around her mouth. “Can you manage the walk back?”
