Page 96 of A Cowboy's Trust
Jake roundedthe corner and froze, slamming on the brakes so hard that a scream escaped Petra in the backseat.
In front of him, Melissa’s car was parked almost off the cliff. Above it, Tansy’s SUV bounced backward erratically, crossing the final five feet separating it from the car. A second later, the SUV made contact.
The car went sailing over the cliff toward the lake, the SUV right after it.
“Holy shit.” Panic flooded his system as he shot his truck forward another twenty feet until he was mostly off the road. Somehow he threw the thing in Park before scrambling out the door and heading for the cliff edge as fast as his feet could go. “Tansy.”
“Watch it.” Aiden caught Jake by the arm, jerking him back when he would have raced right over the edge.
“What the hell just happened?” Jake demanded, trying to shake free from his brother. “Tansy.”
“You falling after her doesn’t help anyone,” Aiden shouted.
Denial shot to his lips, but Jake was more interested in moving than arguing. He jerked to the left and broke away, leaping to the side of the hill where there was at least something to grab onto as he leaned toward the?—
Beyond the rocky edge, a small brown-haired boy popped into sight out of seemingly nowhere.
“Jeffrey?”
“The hell?” Aiden muttered from behind him.
Jake stayed focused on the kid, looking for a way to reach him. “Stay there, buddy. I’m coming to get you.”
“No.” Jeffrey lifted a hand, worry in his eyes. “I’ll fall.”
Shit. Jake froze. “What are you standing on?”
Jeffrey looked down. “A rock. It’s wiggly.”
Christ. “Okay, stay still. I’ll find…something.” Jake glanced up the hill, hoping for inspiration.
“I’m going down the path. I’ll try to get below him,” Aiden called, his voice fading as he ran.
“I’ll check the truck. You have booster cables if nothing else. They’ll make a decent rope,” Petra offered before turning and sprinting out of sight.
Jake took a deep breath and returned his gaze to Jeffrey. “You okay?”
The little tyke dipped his chin solemnly once before shaking his head. “Scared.”
“Me too, buddy. Stay very still, okay?” Jake used every morsel of strength to stay in place and stay calm when everything inside him was screaming to find Tansy. To go to her, to see if there was any chance?—
“Jake?”
Oh God. That was her voice, out of the empty air. “Tansy?”
“No, Tansy. Don’t move.” Jeffrey stared in the opposite direction now. “Stay secret so no one will see you.”
A long, dragged out groan sounded. Tansy sounded drunk or maybe semi-conscious. “‘Kay. You too, then.Shhh.”
“Shhh,” Jeffrey repeated back. He met Jake’s eyes. “She’s in a bush. It’s not a very big bush.”
Fuck. “Can I reach it?”
Jeffrey glanced upward to the edge of the cliff above his head. “Nope.”
The phone in Jake’s pocket rang, and he nearly jumped out of his skin. He somehow kept his footing and answered the thing on speaker. “Yeah?”
“I can see you guys, but there’s no route from here.” Aiden gasped out the words. He must have sprinted the entire way to be at the bottom already. He lowered his voice. “Ah, shit. Melissa didn’t make it.”
