White Water by Linda I. Shands Read Free Book Online Page A

Kara’s heart thudded like a drum as the bear rolled to her feet and ran away from Kara into the woods. She won’t be gone long , Kara thought, not with the cub still in that tree .
    A sharp whinny brought Kara around. Lily stood about thirty yards away, trembling and ready to bolt. In the far distance, Kara heard shouts and saw figures running toward her across the meadow. She lunged toward her horse, but Lily was still spooked and danced just out of reach. Not that it mattered. She couldn’t mount bareback without help, and the only tree stump was too close to the bear. Well, Wako, you wanted to fly. So fly! She took a deep breath and sprinted toward the running men.

“I T WAS MY OWN FAULT , D AD . I wasn’t paying attention.” Kara accepted a cup of chamomile tea from Anne, but her hands were shaking so badly she nearly spilled it .
    â€œWakara, are you sure you’re not injured?” The concern on Dad’s face hurt more than the scrapes and bruises.
    She nodded. “I’m okay, really. The fall knocked the wind out of me. Then I saw the bear . . .”
    She shuddered. “I’ve never been so scared in my life.”
    â€œMother bear is a formidable enemy,” Anne said. “God was watching.”
    Kara agreed. “You’ve got that right. I can’t believe she didn’t charge! And that fire ring. We built it last year, remember, Dad? When I was helping you and Greg round up strays. The rocks were the perfect size and within reach. That wasn’t an accident.”
    The door slammed as Colin and Greg came into the room, rifles still in their hands. “Sow’s gone,” Greg informed them. “So is the cub.”
    â€œNo blood either,” Colin added. “She must not have been hurt very badly.”
    Kara shook her head. “No, the rock hit her in the belly. I think it just knocked the wind out of her.” She took a deep breath and blew it out on a long sigh. “Poor bear. I know how she feels.”
    Everyone laughed, and Kara could feel the tension in the room dissolve.
    Ryan’s feet were dangling from Dad’s lap, but when the phone rang, he jumped up and dashed out of the room. Dad turned to Greg. “You boys store those guns, then get the stock fed. We can finish the branding tomorrow.”
    Colin nodded, but instead of leaving, he handed his rifle to Greg. “I’ll be there in a minute.” He moved to the sofa and squatted down in front of Kara until they were eye-to-eye. “I hope you don’t plan on doing that again anytime soon.” He gazed at her as if there were no one else in the room .
    It’s not like I planned it! Kara started to protest, then realized Colin wasn’t blaming her, but telling her how scared he had been. She grinned and held up two fingers in a Girl Scout salute. “I promise to do my best to stay away from bears.” The smile he gave her felt like a hug.
    Dad cleared his throat. “She’s fine, young man. I think you’d better get to those chores.”
    Colin stood, tipped his hat to Anne, and left the room.
    â€œDad!” Kara couldn’t believe her ears. Dad could be firm sometimes, but he was never rude.
    The phone was ringing again as Ryan bounded back into the room. Dad switched his attention to her little brother. “Aren’t you going to answer that?”
    Ryan shrugged. “Prob’ly not; it’s just Tia, and I already tol’ her she couldn’t talk to Kara now because she’s resting from almost getting eaten by a bear.”
    â€œRyan Sheridan, you didn’t!” Kara exclaimed.
    Dad just stared at Ryan, then turned to Kara. She couldn’t tell if he was going to laugh or cry. “Anne,” he said, almost choking on the words, “would you please get the phone? I’m going upstairs.”
    â€œWhat’s with him?”
    Kara didn’t realize she had said the words out loud