Total pages in book: 110
Estimated words: 107803 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 539(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107803 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 539(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
“I’ll saddle up as well,” Marshall said.
I gave him a quick nod, then looked at Emeline. “Which way did she go?”
“North, since that was the direction Whiskey had gone. Lilibeth went on the northwest trail, and I took the northeast. I found him pretty quickly. We left not even an hour ago, so I can’t imagine she would have gotten that far. Let me saddle up—”
“No,” I said. “The storm’s almost on us, and I want you here. I’m sure Lilibeth stayed on the trail. She may have just gotten turned around and is heading away from the barn.”
Emeline worried her lower lip.
I reached for my sister’s hand and squeezed it. “I’ll find her, don’t worry.”
Turning to Marshall, I said, “You take the northeast trail, just in case. I’ll check the trail Lilibeth took.”
He nodded, and we both got on our horses and made our way toward the trails.
By now, the wind was whipping and the temperature had plummeted. It had also started snowing. And not a soft flurry, but a step down from a full-on blizzard. Hopefully Lilibeth was wearing warm clothing.
I rode up the trail, calling out her name. I wasn’t even sure she would be able to hear anything over the howling wind. The farther I got away from the barn, the more worried I got. Surely she would know to stay on the trail…but what if she’d wandered off it, thanks to the snowfall and near white-out conditions?
I started looking to the left and right. About another fifty yards along, I noticed faint footsteps on the trail, coming from the direction of the open pasture to the right. She had gotten off the trail a bit, but had obviously managed to find her way back. The only problem was that she was going the wrong way.
“Lilibeth!” I shouted as loud as I could. My voice was beginning to get hoarse from calling out her name.
Just when I didn’t think it could get any worse, it started snowing even harder, rapidly covering up her footprints.
“Fuck,” I mumbled, as I urged Orion to pick up the pace.
I pulled out my phone, took off my glove and hit Marshall’s number. He answered right away.
“Nothing yet.”
“I found footprints. But the snow is starting to cover them. She’s on this trail, that much I know. You head back to the barn and get out of this mess. I’ll let everyone know when I’ve found her. She can’t be that far ahead of me.”
“You sure you don’t want me to ride that way?”
A wind gust hit, so strong that even Orion stumbled. “No, get to the barn. I’ll find her.”
“If you change your mind, I’ll stay saddled up for a bit.”
“Just get back safely. I’ll try to update in a few.”
I hit end and pushed the phone into my pocket. The trail was entering a wooded area, and I could still make out a few footsteps, but they’d be completely covered within minutes.
“Stay on the trail, Lilibeth. Stay on the trail.”
My heart was pounding in my chest and my stomach felt like it was weighed down by a ton of rocks. It was the first time in my life that I’d ever felt such gut-wrenching fear.
I rode for ten minutes more, with no sight of Lilibeth or any more footsteps. The snow was falling harder than ever.
“Lilibeth!”
Suddenly, Orion threw his head back and refused to move.
“Come on, buddy, I know it’s a mess out here, but we’ve gotta keep going.”
He started walking backward, snorting the whole time. When he let out a scream, I knew something was wrong. When we’d backtracked about a dozen feet, Orion headed into the woods, and no matter how hard I tried to make him back up, he refused.
That’s when I saw her.
Lilibeth was under a tree, sitting with her back against the wide trunk, her eyes closed.
“That’s a good boy, Orion!” I cried, before jumping off his back and running as best I could through the snow to get to Lilibeth. She’d been smart enough to huddle under a large pine. The thickness of it helped to shield some of the snow and wind.
“Lilibeth,” I shouted, as I dropped to my knees. She wasn’t opening her eyes. I grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her, hard. “Lilibeth!”
Her eyes snapped open. “Caden?”
“What happened?”
Tears filled her eyes. “Lyra got spooked and threw me.”
“Are you hurt?”
She shook her head. “No, but I’m f-freezing. I can’t feel m-my hands.”
I looked down to see she wasn’t wearing any gloves. She didn’t have a hat on either. I pulled my scarf off and wrapped it around her head, making sure her ears and head were covered as best as they could be.
“Can you stand?”
Nodding, she took my hands, and I helped her up.
“I’m…I’m s-so cold. I can’t get warm. The s-storm came on s-so fast.”