The Circle Eight: Caleb (21 page)

Caleb scrambled to his feet and rushed over to them. Justice pranced around, throwing his head and making that strange screaming noise he always did when he was agitated. Another bullet whizzed past his head and he dropped to his knees to crawl. Rory was already huddled with Benjy behind a fallen tree. Her short hair was sticking up every which way.

“Are you okay?” he whispered.

“Fine. We need to get back on the horse and get the hell out of here though.” A bullet slammed into the fallen tree startling a squeak out of her.

Caleb agreed wholeheartedly and knew they only had moments before Garza closed in. Right now they were just pumping rounds into the trees hoping to hit something. He reached for the horse’s reins to calm him when the bullet slammed into his back.

As he headed for the ground, he cursed long and hard. Rory was beside him in seconds, her amber eyes full of worry. He glanced up at her, leaves partially blocking his view.

“You got yourself shot, Ranger. That wasn’t very smart.”

“It wasn’t my plan.” He sucked in a breath as the pain sliced through him. It was a good hit, deep inside his body and it hadn’t exited the premises either. Fuck.

She dragged him over behind the tree and propped him up on his side. “Put your hand here, Benjy. Hold it hard, okay?” She guided the boys hands to the wound, which was a few inches above his lower back.

The boy pressed down on his wound, sending shards of pain through Caleb’s body but he didn’t let even a peep escape his lips. There was no need to remind the boy he was hurting his brother. He already knew.

“I’m going to get the horse. Stay put.” She disappeared from view leaving Caleb alone with Benjy.

“It’s okay, Ben. We’ll find a way to get out of this.”

The boy shook his head but Caleb wasn’t going to give up hope. They had to survive. He wouldn’t accept any other outcome.

Rory returned, her face taut with tension and worry. “Benjy, I know you’re not going to like this but you’re going to have to go by yourself.”

Caleb tried to protest, but she slapped a hand over his mouth. He thought about biting her.

“If I don’t help your brother he’s going to bleed to death alone in the woods. If you ride for your family’s ranch, you can fly like the wind. With only your weight, Justice can run faster.” She cupped his small face in her hands. “You have to save your brother and me. I know you can do it.”

Benjy blanched, his eyes wide. Caleb understood Rory’s plan and agreed with her. It was their only option and the one chance to get Benjy back to the Grahams. It was also dangerous as hell and could put all of them six feet under.

She set the saddlebags beside Caleb and took out one of her shirts, pressing it to his wound. “You have to go now, Benjy.”

The boy got to his feet and stared down at Caleb. With his heart aching, Caleb nodded his approval, knowing he could be sending his brother to his death at the hands of a madman. One who had already done damage to the boy’s young life.

With an agility that didn’t surprise his big brother, Benjy flung himself up into the saddle. Rory pointed in the right direction.

“You heard him. Follow the tree line, stay low in the saddle, until you pass the banyan tree. Then ride as hard as you can toward your family.” She sounded as desperate as he felt. They had no idea if they’d see the boy again. “Go. Now.”

The horse raced off, leaving the two of them alone in the forest. A woman, barely recovered from a wound and fever, and a man, bleeding into the leaves beneath him. The world was a cruel place but if God was kind, he would save Benjamin Graham.

Elizabeth knew they’d left without her, but she didn’t let that stop her. As if the sounds of four horses leaving the yard could be muffled. Did they think her a fool or deaf? She pulled on her leather riding skirt and buttoned up her blouse as fast as she could.

When she ran through the kitchen, she ignored Eva’s protest. The housekeeper could yell at her when they got back with Caleb. For now, Elizabeth would do what she knew was right. She snatched the familiar rifle from above the door and burst out into the early morning light.

She hadn’t told Matt everything she knew, like the fact that Caleb’s gelding had a nicked right shoe, or that Caleb favored riding through the woods rather than out in the open. Matt wasn’t ready to believe she was capable but that was about to change.

Her horse, Bella, greeted her at the stall, seemingly eager to go on an adventure. She saddled the mare quickly, taking the time to be sure the cinch was tight although she wanted to simply race out of there bareback. After stowing her rifle, she led her out of the barn and found her sister-in-law, Hannah, waiting, arms crossed and expression grim. Her long brown hair was still in a braid and she wore her nightclothes. “You know Matt wouldn’t approve.”

“I don’t care what Matt thinks. This was my idea and he ran off like a shadow without me.” Elizabeth held onto her control, although a scream threatened to burst forth at any second.

“I know you can do anything, Ellie.” The nickname, long since forgotten, buried with her mother, came out of Hannah’s mouth so easily. It stopped Elizabeth in her tracks, emotion swamping her.

“Where did you hear that?”

Hannah frowned. “Ellie? I don’t know. I’ve wanted to call you that since we met and I guess it just came out. If you don’t like it—”

“No, it’s okay.” Elizabeth found she missed it. The world had been a softer place when she had her mother’s arms to hide in. Now she had a different kind of life, one that would have been very different if her mother hadn’t been murdered.

Hannah pulled her into a hug and Elizabeth took a moment to enjoy the embrace. She didn’t allow much physical affection but found this morning, she needed it. Hannah pulled back and put her hands on Elizabeth’s shoulders.

“Be careful, Ellie.”

Elizabeth nodded, her throat tight. It was time to catch up with her brothers and the ranch hands. Time to save Caleb and keep the circle as complete as it could be. There was no way she would lose another brother. She hadn’t gotten over losing the last one.

She rode out of the yard, following their trail with ease. With her weight and her mare’s strength, they would catch up to the men. It was time to go to war.

Benjy rode hard, his breath caught in his throat from the speed of the animal beneath him. It was as if the gelding’s hooves didn’t touch the ground. Rory had been right. He was flying.

He didn’t want to leave Caleb or Rory but he knew they would all die if he stayed. Benjy was only ten but he knew how to survive, one way or another. He leaned over the horse’s neck and closed his eyes for a moment, letting the wind buffet his face.

The sounds of guns faded and he found himself at the edge of the forest. They burst into a clearing and he saw the banyan tree. It had been so long since he’d seen it, but he recognized it. A bubble of memory rose up inside him. Riding on his father’s shoulders so he could touch the lowest branch of the tree. He swallowed the lump in his throat and did what Rory told him to.

He rode even harder, letting the gelding have his head, galloping over the terrain with ease. It seemed the horse knew where he was going and was as eager as Benjy to get there. Fear burbled in his stomach as he heard horses. He wasn’t sure where they were so he kept riding, hoping he wouldn’t feel a bullet in his back.

“Hey!” A shout sounded from his left and he ignored it. Home. He had to get home. He had to save Caleb.

“Benjy?” The voice, the sound of his name, echoed through him, making his heart thump harder.

He turned his head and saw a lone rider coming toward him, a big man with a blue shirt and a brown hat. Then he took the hat off and he recognized his big brother Matt.

A wall of relief and exhaustion rolled over him and he yanked on the reins, heedless of the horse’s protest. Tears sprang to his eyes. Matt. It was really Matt.

“Holy shit. Benjy?” His big brother rode closer until he pulled up beside him. “Oh my God.”

Benjy flung himself off the horse and into his brother’s arms. Tears streamed from his eyes and he sobbed so hard, his stomach hurt. Matt mumbled his name, his hands running up and down his back. There weren’t enough words to express the relief and joy coursing through him.

“How did you get here and where is Caleb? This is his horse, right?” Matt pulled back and looked at him. Benjy was surprised to see his brother crying too. He thought men didn’t ever cry. “Can you talk? Are you okay?”

A thousand thoughts crowded his brain and he finally wanted to voice them out loud. It had been so long, he almost forgot how to form words with his mouth.

“Caleb’s shot. In the woods with Rory. He needs help. There are bad men out there.” His voice was rusty from disuse, crackly and deeper than Benjy expected. It would have been funny but it was only sad that he hadn’t spoken in more than four years.

“How did he—? Oh never mind that. We can figure that out later.” Matt kissed his forehead. “I can’t believe you’re here.”

Neither could Benjy. He spotted another rider coming toward them, a streak of brown on a paint he recognized as Elizabeth’s. She rode up in a cloud of dust, her mouth open in surprise.

“Benjy?”

He smiled, realizing he was finally here. His family. His home. After five years of darkness, he had found the light.

“Hi, Ellie.”

She smiled back at him. “I missed you.” Her voice shook and she bit her lip as though holding back more words. He appreciated that.

“Me too.” Elizabeth had been the middle child, the sister who had taken the time to play with him when Rebecca and Catherine wouldn’t, and the boys ignored him. She had grown into a pretty lady while he’d been away.

“We’ll have to save the stories for later.” Matt plopped him back on Justice. “Elizabeth, I will tan your hide later for disobeying me. For now, take Benjy back to the house and don’t argue with me.

“I won’t.” She frowned at Matt and Benjy knew their family was still the same. Liked to bicker and argue, but always loved each other. He picked up the reins and waited. “Where’s Caleb and why is Benjy riding his horse?”

“All I know is he’s shot in the woods. I’m going to get the boys and go after him.” He fired his pistol in the air and shouted, “To the Graham!”

Elizabeth wheeled her horse around and gestured to Benjy to head toward the house. “Race me?”

Benjy leaned low in the saddle and raced toward home. For the first time in five years, he was back at the Circle Eight, his family around him.

Rory took Caleb’s pistol and kept her other hand against his wound. She straddled his thigh, doubly glad she wore trousers. It was awkward and it made her back hurt but there was no other choice. Her hammer sat beside her, ready to swing if necessary. Her hand itched to do just that.

Caleb’s breathing was even but slow. She assumed he was trying to keep himself calm and slow the blood flow. It had already soaked through the shirt she held to the wound. How strange that less than a week ago, she was wounded in her side and needed his assistance to save her life. The situation was now reversed and she was saving his.

Or at least she hoped she was. The bullets had slowed down but not stopped. She prayed that Benjy would be okay. He was stronger than he looked, gangly with long limbs and big feet, but he was a Graham. If she learned anything from Caleb, it was that his family did not give up. Ever. She could appreciate that and in fact, had the same core of stubborn strength.

“What do you see?” He barely whispered but she heard him anyway.

“Nothing but the breeze.” She peered around, the thick canopy of leaves blocking much of her view. They were hidden but so were the men chasing them. It was a blessing and a curse to be in a dense forest.

“Did Benjy get away?”

“I’m sure he did. He was riding like the wind when he disappeared from sight. He’s a natural horseman.” Rory was surprised by how well he reacted and rode off, alone and unprotected. He would be a hell of a man when he grew up.

“That’s from Pa. He was born riding a horse.” Caleb coughed and a moan followed. She hadn’t seen the tough ranger so vulnerable before. The fact he was letting her see it said a lot about their relationship, or whatever it was.

“What happens after all this is over?” She didn’t know what her future held, but knew she wasn’t the same person she’d been the day before she met Caleb Graham.

“I’m hoping we win.”

She clucked her tongue at him. “That’s not what I meant and you know it. You took me off my land, and apparently Texas thinks it owns it. I have nothing but a few possessions and my father’s tools.”

He was quiet for a few moments before he spoke. “I’m sorry for that but if it wasn’t me, it would have been another ranger who came for you. The land belonged to your father and when he died, it belonged to the Republic of Texas. The fact is, women can’t own property.”

It was a lance to her heart. She didn’t own the property because she had tits. How frustrating. Maddening. Infuriating.

“You mean because I don’t have a swinging dick, I lose my home?”

He barked out something like a laugh but it was too odd to be one. “Something like that. Damn, woman, how do you keep surprising me?”