an outcropping
a hundred yards from the burned-out chopper. Using a sheet of plastic, a plastic
container and a few heavy rocks, he had set up a still for making water in the
dry streambed not far from their makeshift camp.
Next he planned to build a stack of firewood to light at the
first sign of a search plane in the area. He walked into camp expecting to see
the little redhead, wishing he wasn’t quite so eager to get there.
She wasn’t sitting beneath the ledge out of the sun with her
foot propped up as she should have been. The fire had burned down to embers, but
the pile of dry branches had mostly been fed into the flames so he knew that
wherever she was, she hadn’t been gone very long.
A pit stop, he told himself, which was the only reason he
didn’t chase off to find her. He’d give her a few minutes of privacy before he
took off in search of her. By then she would probably be back.
He set down the pair of makeshift crutches he had made for her
that might need to be shortened, and started collecting wood for the signal
fire. All the while, he was listening for sounds of her return. When five
minutes passed and he didn’t hear footsteps, his worry ratcheted up, and he
started calling her name.
“Sabrina! Sabrina, where are you?”
He checked for small, female footprints, found a hop-skip
pattern that moved off down a trail leading toward a rocky ridge not far from
the campsite.
He had almost reached the pile of boulders when a bloodcurdling
scream sliced through the quiet desert air. A jolt of adrenaline hit him and
Alex shot down the path, his heart practically exploding as he raced toward the
rocks, nearly running over Sabrina as she hobbled as fast as she could in the
opposite direction.
To avoid a collision, he caught her around the waist and swung
her away from him before she could impact his aching ribs.
“Alex! Oh, my God! Oh, my God, it bit me!”
Fear kicked his heartbeat up a couple more notches.
“Rattlesnake? Show me. Show me where it bit you.”
She was shaking her head, red curls flying around her face.
“Not...not a snake.” She wheezed in a breath. “Scorpion,” she said, shaking all
over as she pointed toward the rocks behind her.
Crawling into a crevice was a big, black, nasty-looking
scorpion about five inches long. It disappeared into the shadowy depths of the
rock, and Alex relaxed a little.
“It’s all right, love. They sting like bloody hell but a
scorpion bite won’t kill you.” Her arms tightened around his waist and when she
looked up at him, he read the terror in a face that was rapidly turning
blue.
“Can’t breathe...”
“Oh, shit, you’re allergic.”
She nodded, wheezed in a breath. “Bee...stings.”
For the second time in two days, he gritted his teeth against
the ache in his side and lifted her into his arms. Alex started running, heading
back to camp.
Her eyes were closed, her breathing ragged as he laid her on
the grass pallet, raced over to retrieve his pack, set the bag down beside her
and unzipped the top.
“Listen to me, Sabrina. You’re going to be okay. One of my
sister’s friends was allergic to bee stings. I had to take her to the hospital
once. Scared the hell out of me. After that, I’ve always carried an EpiPen in my
gear bag.”
She nodded, tried to smile. His chest squeezed at her bravado.
He knew Sabrina was a woman who liked to be in control, one who had a hard-on
for men she couldn’t walk on. But now he knew she was also sweet, and tough when
it counted.
Determined to do it right, he unzipped her jeans and tugged
them down over her hips, ignored the pretty little pink lace panties she was
wearing, took the cap off the needle and jammed it into her thigh. He flinched a
little at her faint whimper of pain.
“Just take it easy. Lie still and let the medicine go to work.”
He checked her pulse and waited for her heartbeat to slow. A few more minutes
ticked past. “How are you doing?”
Sabrina swallowed and opened her
a hundred yards from the burned-out chopper. Using a sheet of plastic, a plastic
container and a few heavy rocks, he had set up a still for making water in the
dry streambed not far from their makeshift camp.
Next he planned to build a stack of firewood to light at the
first sign of a search plane in the area. He walked into camp expecting to see
the little redhead, wishing he wasn’t quite so eager to get there.
She wasn’t sitting beneath the ledge out of the sun with her
foot propped up as she should have been. The fire had burned down to embers, but
the pile of dry branches had mostly been fed into the flames so he knew that
wherever she was, she hadn’t been gone very long.
A pit stop, he told himself, which was the only reason he
didn’t chase off to find her. He’d give her a few minutes of privacy before he
took off in search of her. By then she would probably be back.
He set down the pair of makeshift crutches he had made for her
that might need to be shortened, and started collecting wood for the signal
fire. All the while, he was listening for sounds of her return. When five
minutes passed and he didn’t hear footsteps, his worry ratcheted up, and he
started calling her name.
“Sabrina! Sabrina, where are you?”
He checked for small, female footprints, found a hop-skip
pattern that moved off down a trail leading toward a rocky ridge not far from
the campsite.
He had almost reached the pile of boulders when a bloodcurdling
scream sliced through the quiet desert air. A jolt of adrenaline hit him and
Alex shot down the path, his heart practically exploding as he raced toward the
rocks, nearly running over Sabrina as she hobbled as fast as she could in the
opposite direction.
To avoid a collision, he caught her around the waist and swung
her away from him before she could impact his aching ribs.
“Alex! Oh, my God! Oh, my God, it bit me!”
Fear kicked his heartbeat up a couple more notches.
“Rattlesnake? Show me. Show me where it bit you.”
She was shaking her head, red curls flying around her face.
“Not...not a snake.” She wheezed in a breath. “Scorpion,” she said, shaking all
over as she pointed toward the rocks behind her.
Crawling into a crevice was a big, black, nasty-looking
scorpion about five inches long. It disappeared into the shadowy depths of the
rock, and Alex relaxed a little.
“It’s all right, love. They sting like bloody hell but a
scorpion bite won’t kill you.” Her arms tightened around his waist and when she
looked up at him, he read the terror in a face that was rapidly turning
blue.
“Can’t breathe...”
“Oh, shit, you’re allergic.”
She nodded, wheezed in a breath. “Bee...stings.”
For the second time in two days, he gritted his teeth against
the ache in his side and lifted her into his arms. Alex started running, heading
back to camp.
Her eyes were closed, her breathing ragged as he laid her on
the grass pallet, raced over to retrieve his pack, set the bag down beside her
and unzipped the top.
“Listen to me, Sabrina. You’re going to be okay. One of my
sister’s friends was allergic to bee stings. I had to take her to the hospital
once. Scared the hell out of me. After that, I’ve always carried an EpiPen in my
gear bag.”
She nodded, tried to smile. His chest squeezed at her bravado.
He knew Sabrina was a woman who liked to be in control, one who had a hard-on
for men she couldn’t walk on. But now he knew she was also sweet, and tough when
it counted.
Determined to do it right, he unzipped her jeans and tugged
them down over her hips, ignored the pretty little pink lace panties she was
wearing, took the cap off the needle and jammed it into her thigh. He flinched a
little at her faint whimper of pain.
“Just take it easy. Lie still and let the medicine go to work.”
He checked her pulse and waited for her heartbeat to slow. A few more minutes
ticked past. “How are you doing?”
Sabrina swallowed and opened her
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