was fight. Courtland never did
anything to harm anybody and needed our help. Sure, Court was different, but
the idea he could somehow communicate with animals had intrigued me ever since
he managed to calm Big Blue down to keep my horse from bucking me to Timbuktu.
Besides, the guy was obviously in a great deal of pain. Now that I thought about
it, I supposed I should have stayed out there with Courtland. He was probably
baking in the heat.
~~ Courtland ~~
The sun beat down on my
leg and hand, intensifying the pain. I wondered if Adela and Max were going to
come back and get me or just leave me to bake in the sun. If Maxen had his way,
he would have left me on the side of the road when they first found me, but Adela
actually seemed to care … I hoped.
In my wildest dreams, I
never thought I would ever be in the position of needing help from Max Wendell.
I never really believed we’d speak to each other again after the fourth grade. Max
wanted nothing to do with me and I wanted nothing to do with him. However, Adela
wanted Max. That was something I needed to change.
The pain shooting
through my leg and hand heightened, almost as if they were still on fire. I opened
my eyes and peeked down at them just to be certain. I wasn’t sure if the fact
that they weren’t in flames was good or not, considering how much it hurt. At
least if there were flames, I could maybe put them out and feel better.
I glanced around at my
surroundings. About fifteen feet away from me stood a tree over ten feet tall
with large branches full of leaves and shade double its size covering the
ground below. I wished they’d left me under the tree instead of out in the sun,
but I guessed when they discovered the condition of the house, their priorities
changed. I couldn’t really blame them.
I inched my way off the
board, doing a one-leg, one-arm crab-crawl across the grass. The pain intensified
with each inch I moved and I thought I’d lose consciousness before I reached
the shade. I stopped halfway, winded, my breath speeding like a sprinter’s in a
hundred-yard dash. Sweat dripped into my eyes so I swiped my hand across my
forehead. My vision blurred a little and I blinked, trying to focus on the
tree. God, don’t let me die here in the sun. I felt so helpless. Out of
breath. Out of strength. Out of will. I pictured Adela’s beautiful golden brown
eyes as my own closed, seeing her as the angel she truly was.
Chapter
10
~~Adela~~
When Max and I came up
from the cellar, we headed back down the driveway where we’d left Courtland.
A small gasp escaped
from my throat when I noticed the empty board. “Oh my God, where is he?”
Max frowned. “Your
guess is as good as mine. Why do you care so much?”
“Because he’s a person!
Why don’t you care?”
He shrugged.
I shook my head at Max
unable to figure out why he was so unconcerned about Court, and scanned the
hillside until I finally spotted him lying under a tree. I ran to him—the way
he lay in the grass with his eyes closed, he appeared to be dead. I put my hand
over my mouth to keep from screaming when I saw his right arm move. Max came huffing
down the hill and stood beside me.
“‘Bout time you guys
came back. I thought I was going to broil out here in the sun.”
“How did you get over
here?” I asked.
Court turned his head
toward me. “How the hell do you think? I crawled. You have no idea, even on the
coldest days, how hot the sun feels on burnt flesh.”
“I’m sorry,” I said in
my softest voice. “We should have left you in the shade. I didn’t realize …”
“Let’s get him back on
the board so we can pull him to the cellar,” Max said.
Max positioned the
board next to Court. “Since you were able to get over here, do you think you
might be able to get your sorry, heavy ass back on the board now that I put the
thing right next to you?”
Courtland glared at
Max. “It’s comforting to know that disaster could not further tarnish
anything to harm anybody and needed our help. Sure, Court was different, but
the idea he could somehow communicate with animals had intrigued me ever since
he managed to calm Big Blue down to keep my horse from bucking me to Timbuktu.
Besides, the guy was obviously in a great deal of pain. Now that I thought about
it, I supposed I should have stayed out there with Courtland. He was probably
baking in the heat.
~~ Courtland ~~
The sun beat down on my
leg and hand, intensifying the pain. I wondered if Adela and Max were going to
come back and get me or just leave me to bake in the sun. If Maxen had his way,
he would have left me on the side of the road when they first found me, but Adela
actually seemed to care … I hoped.
In my wildest dreams, I
never thought I would ever be in the position of needing help from Max Wendell.
I never really believed we’d speak to each other again after the fourth grade. Max
wanted nothing to do with me and I wanted nothing to do with him. However, Adela
wanted Max. That was something I needed to change.
The pain shooting
through my leg and hand heightened, almost as if they were still on fire. I opened
my eyes and peeked down at them just to be certain. I wasn’t sure if the fact
that they weren’t in flames was good or not, considering how much it hurt. At
least if there were flames, I could maybe put them out and feel better.
I glanced around at my
surroundings. About fifteen feet away from me stood a tree over ten feet tall
with large branches full of leaves and shade double its size covering the
ground below. I wished they’d left me under the tree instead of out in the sun,
but I guessed when they discovered the condition of the house, their priorities
changed. I couldn’t really blame them.
I inched my way off the
board, doing a one-leg, one-arm crab-crawl across the grass. The pain intensified
with each inch I moved and I thought I’d lose consciousness before I reached
the shade. I stopped halfway, winded, my breath speeding like a sprinter’s in a
hundred-yard dash. Sweat dripped into my eyes so I swiped my hand across my
forehead. My vision blurred a little and I blinked, trying to focus on the
tree. God, don’t let me die here in the sun. I felt so helpless. Out of
breath. Out of strength. Out of will. I pictured Adela’s beautiful golden brown
eyes as my own closed, seeing her as the angel she truly was.
Chapter
10
~~Adela~~
When Max and I came up
from the cellar, we headed back down the driveway where we’d left Courtland.
A small gasp escaped
from my throat when I noticed the empty board. “Oh my God, where is he?”
Max frowned. “Your
guess is as good as mine. Why do you care so much?”
“Because he’s a person!
Why don’t you care?”
He shrugged.
I shook my head at Max
unable to figure out why he was so unconcerned about Court, and scanned the
hillside until I finally spotted him lying under a tree. I ran to him—the way
he lay in the grass with his eyes closed, he appeared to be dead. I put my hand
over my mouth to keep from screaming when I saw his right arm move. Max came huffing
down the hill and stood beside me.
“‘Bout time you guys
came back. I thought I was going to broil out here in the sun.”
“How did you get over
here?” I asked.
Court turned his head
toward me. “How the hell do you think? I crawled. You have no idea, even on the
coldest days, how hot the sun feels on burnt flesh.”
“I’m sorry,” I said in
my softest voice. “We should have left you in the shade. I didn’t realize …”
“Let’s get him back on
the board so we can pull him to the cellar,” Max said.
Max positioned the
board next to Court. “Since you were able to get over here, do you think you
might be able to get your sorry, heavy ass back on the board now that I put the
thing right next to you?”
Courtland glared at
Max. “It’s comforting to know that disaster could not further tarnish
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