LeClerc 01 - Autumn Ecstasy by Pamela K Forrest Read Free Book Online

closed, and her head nodded. She felt herself falling and snapped her eyes open. But it felt so good, lying in the furs. She stretched her legs and wrapped more of the coverings over her.
    She would not — could not — sleep. She had to stay awake. She had to be prepared in case of Indians.
    Her eyes drifted closed. Sighing deeply, Linsey snuggled down in the softness and found a deep, dreamless sleep.
     
     
    Wiggling beneath the furs, Linsey wondered why her maid, Betsy, had not lit the morning fire. Her room was usually toasty warm before she rose. She decided to stay in bed; Betsy must have overslept. She’d come soon.
    Suddenly Linsey remembered. She was not in her room with its silk wall hangings and velvet draperies. Betsy would not come bounding cheerfully in at any moment, chattering while she efficiently made a fire. She was alone, in a cabin deep in the wilderness, surrounded by Indians. A cabin owned by an unknown man whose very name held the power to frighten fearless men.
    Peeking from under the furs, Linsey saw that the door was standing wide open and snow had blown in during the night. The fire was cold ashes, the stew once more frozen solid.
    The frigid air began to creep beneath the furs, forcing her to face the facts. The door was standing open, no one was around to close it but herself, and if she did not get a fire started, she would freeze to death. With a moan she climbed out of the warm nest, dragging one of the heavy furs with her.
    The snow had thickened during the night and was now falling in fat, fluffy flakes. Linsey curled her toes away from the cold snow melting beneath her bare feet, bitterly regretting that she had removed her shoes and stockings. Shivering, disgusted because the snow blocked the door, she knelt and began clearing it away. By the time she finished, her hands were red and numb from the cold.
    Linsey latched the door securely and blew on her hands. Wrapping the heavy fur around her, she turned toward the fireplace. Somehow she had to get a fire started, but how? It was not a requisite for graduation for the young ladies who attended Miss Mary Sarah Holland’s School of Completion. Linsey could sew the most delicate of seams; she could sing and accompany herself on the pianoforte. She knew to the smallest detail how to plan a party and how to graciously instruct servants about their duties. She knew exactly how much material, lace and trim to order when designing a ball gown.
    She could not start a fire.
    Trying to remember what Kaleb had done the night before, Linsey piled heavy pieces of wood onto the cold ashes. After numerous tries, she managed to get a weak spark from the flint and steel, but to her frustration no roaring, warming flame followed.
    The wind blew fiercely against the walls of the cabin, whistling through each hidden crack in the mud and clay chinking between the logs. Linsey could no longer stop her teeth from chattering, and her body shook uncontrollably. Each time she moved to strike flint against steel, the heavy fur slipped from her shoulders. She struggled to find the strength to pull it back into place.
    Perspiration beaded her brow even as the frigid air teased around her. After what seemed like hours, she helplessly admitted defeat and climbed wearily to her feet. Dragging the fur with her, she climbed back into the bed, wrapping herself in the blankets and furs, praying for just a little warmth.
    Linsey dozed off and on during the day, waking to find she had kicked off the covers while fleeing the terrors of her nightmares and was once again shaking from the bone chilling cold. Snuggling beneath the furs yet again, she waited for the warmth to comfort her, drifting into the nether world of unconsciousness.
    When the cold again penetrated her sleep, she opened her eyes to total darkness. It took long minutes of concentration for her to remember where she was and to realize that night had come.
    She ignored the grumblings of her stomach as it