Broken Wings by Alexandrea Weis Read Free Book Online Page B

He jumped through some of the brush to his left and soon found himself in a small clearing. There, standing next to a tall oil barrel, was Pamela.
    She spun around to face him. The rifle, still at the ready in her hands, was pointed at his chest.
    “Are you insane?” she yelled at him as she lowered her rifle. “I could have shot you!”
    Daniel stopped, bent over, and tried to catch his breath. “I heard the gunshots…and thought you might be hurt…I took off from the house to come…and help you.”
    “And surprising a woman with a loaded gun was going to help me? Do what? Spend the next eighteen to twenty in prison?” she shouted.
    Pamela spotted several small trickles of blood flowing down his arms. She ran to his side and inspected his arms. “Jesus, Daniel. You’re all sliced up.”
    Daniel stood up and, still gasping for breath, yelled, “What in the hell are you doing out here? And why did I hear gunshots?”
    Pamela never looked up from the man’s bleeding arms. “We have got to get you back to the house.”
    At that moment, he felt the shaking begin. It always started in his knees and worked its way up. Soon, it would reach his hands and face and he would not be able to hide it from her this time. He eagerly scanned the brush surrounding him. There was nowhere to run and hide.
    “Daniel!” Pamela’s voice registered in his brain. “Daniel, are you all right?”
    He felt his body caving in. The panic was ripping through his muscles and tissue, taking over his will to fight and his desire to maintain control.
    Pamela watched as Daniel sank to his knees. He reached up and placed his face in his trembling hands, and then he started to hyperventilate. His gasping breath rattled in his throat as his body seemed to be taken over by convulsions. Pamela knelt down in front of him and pushed his hands away from his face. She looked into his eyes and immediately saw that unmistakable expression.
    “Goddamn it,” Daniel growled beneath his breath. “Not here. Not now.” His eyes burned into hers. “Not with you.” He wrapped his bleeding arms about his body and started to rock gently back and forth. “Go away, Pamela. Leave me alone,” he ordered in a shaky voice.
    Pamela calmly placed her hands about his face. “Daniel, I’m not leaving you. I am right here.” She knew she had to get him out of there. “I have to get you back to the house,” she declared.
    He covered his ears. “The gunfire! I can still hear the gunfire!” he mumbled.
    Pamela ran back to the ATV and put the vehicle into gear. She pulled it right alongside of Daniel. She got off the four-wheeled vehicle and went back to him.
    “I need you to focus, Daniel,” she directed as she placed her hand under his chin and tried to draw his eyes to hers. “I want you to listen to me and do as I say. I need you to get up and get on this four-wheeler.”
    She watched as Daniel nodded his head and fought to gain control of his rapid breathing. She helped him to his feet and lifted his leg over the back of the vehicle. She then climbed on to the seat in front of him and rested her rifle across her lap.
    She turned back to Daniel. “Put your arms around my waist and hold on as tight as you can.”
    He did as she instructed. Pamela could feel his respirations beginning to calm, but his shaking body was now soaked through with perspiration. His sweat mixed with blood seeped through her own shirt and created a chill against her skin. She took a breath and slowly started to make her way out of the clearing, her body straining with tension as she maneuvered the ATV through the dense woods. Pamela did not feel her body relax until she saw the familiar blue and white cottage looming before her.
    *  *  *  *
    “A bear?” Daniel said as his dark eyes stared transfixed at Pamela.
    He was sitting on her green couch, naked from the waist up and wrapped in a blanket. He had bandages down both his forearms, along with a few minor scratches on his face,