Montana Wild by Roni Hall Read Free Book Online Page A

sides of the river. Every few minutes someone pulled in a fish, but they kept only the big ones. The smaller fish were thrown back for another day.
    On the other side of the river, Tommy squealed with laughter. He reeled in his line and climbed up the rock bank to a higher perch where he could try his luck. Jamie kept her eye on him since he was making her nervous, but he soon settled in on his new ledge and cast his pole.
    Jamie spotted Kevin nearby and strolled over to him as he pulled up his fishing pole. “I never was much of a fisherman,” he admitted to her. “I enjoy it, but I never was good at it. Uncle Jake was though.”
    The mention of Jacob’s name drew her back to another place and time. A sad smile crossed her face as she thought of Jacob and made eye contact with Kevin. Reminiscing, she took a few steps toward the river. The sight of the guys fishing caught her attention and instinctively her eyes sought out Tommy. She caught a glimpse of upward movement which drew her focus to a rock ledge above his old perch. He was climbing too high and the rocks hung out over the river. Gasping deeply, her hand clutched her chest.
    “Tommy!” she called, but her voice did not carry across the river. Kevin followed her eyes and locked in on Tommy. He called to Tommy too, and then Rick but they could not hear him either. Their voices were drowned out by the sounds of the rushing water. Kevin dropped his pole and hurried to cross the bridge, and she followed right behind him.
    Everything happened so fast, but Jamie felt as if she was watching it in slow motion.

Chapter 7
    Kevin called again to Rick as he ran across the bridge. Finally he caught Rick’s attention and pointed upward toward Tommy.
    Rick looked up and called to his son with panic in his voice. “Tom, I’m coming! Stay put!” Rick began to climb toward his son, trying to scale large boulders in one step. “Don’t move, son! I’m coming.” The climb was steep and rough and more than once, Rick’s footing slipped despite using all four limbs.
    Looking lost and scared, Tommy tried to descend, but the ledges were too shallow. He lost his footing but caught himself on a thin ridge.
    Kevin, now in a full run, raced against time.
    Tommy precariously hung over the rough water. He turned his head looking for help. “Dad! Dad!” he cried frantically. One of his feet slipped so he tried grabbing another rock shelf to his right. He missed his mark and now dangled by his fingertips.
    “Hang on, Tom! I’m almost there,” Rick shouted.
    “Daaaad!
    Jamie ran across the bridge, but suddenly something stopped her. Halting in her tracks, she watched from the bridge as the drama unfolded before her eyes. By now, everyone had ceased their activities and watched in fear as Tom screamed for help.
    Jamie knew that Tommy could not hold on for long, and Rick feverishly tried to reach his son over the steep rocky terrain. From her vantage point, she could see that Rick wouldn’t make it in time. Again without thinking, and listening to an inner voice, Jamie climbed over the bridge railing and secured her footing on the thin outside ledge, holding on to the coarse rope with one arm, leaning out over the river. Looking below into the raging waters, she was relieved to see no large rocks. She then focused her eyes on Tommy. As she’d predicted, he could hang on no longer and dropped into the rushing water below.
    Knowing she only had microseconds to work with, Jamie fixed her eyes on Tommy. She could not lose sight of him in the churning waters. He was moving fast and her timing had to be perfect so she would need help here and once again trusted the inner voice that said, NOW!
    “Please, God!” she prayed out loud and let go of the bridge as Tommy approached. The ice-cold water jolted her as she went under, and all sound was muffled. She kept her arms open groping for Tommy until she touched the fabric of his life jacket and drew him close. With one hand clutching him