I missed Anne terribly, even though it had only been a week since Tina had taken her back to town to catch a bus for the airport. We parted on good terms with her promising to return as soon as an indoor bathroom was installed.
The rain that had poured for several days was testing the limits of my new roof. Thankfully, it had held up well and kept me nice and dry. I passed the time stuck inside by thinking up plans for my new ranch.
Mustang had stopped by twice to check on me. He was still unable to come inside and wouldn’t let me come out in the rain, so we barely had time to talk.
When I wasn’t making plans for my new concept, Loving Arms Ranch, I was thinking of business contacts who might be willing to give donations to the business if I could get a non-profit status.
My last step before bed was to compile a list of professionals who might be willing to exchange work at the ranch for a week of room and board. I’d paid a lot of money to ride a horse for a week and there were probably plenty of other professionals who could use a working vacation.
By the fourth straight day of pouring rain, I began to worry about Mustang being outside. He hadn’t come by since an early morning visit a couple of days before, meaning he was either holed up somewhere in one of the caves or the terrain was impossible to cross because of the mud and water. I went to bed that night hoping the rain would let up by the next day.
Sometime during the night, I dreamed that I was being pulled in two different directions, one hand holding me firmly to the ground on the ranch, the other pulling me by my arm, leading me back to the city.
During this dream I heard my name shouted over and over by a muffled voice, calling out to me as if someone was searching for me in the dark.
The voice eventually grew louder, more frantic.
I heard my name through the fog of my sleep. When I opened my eyes and listened, I heard it again over the thunderous sound of roaring water.
A banging noise accompanied the shouts as Mustang called my name over and over, while furiously pounding on the wall.
I sat up as an object crashed through my window, sending the glass flying into my house.
Mustang thrust a lantern in through the hole he’d just made. It was only then that I could see the light reflecting off the water that had filled the main floor of my house and was creeping up the stairway to the loft.
“Oh my god! What is happening?” I yelled to him.
I gasped, frightened by what I saw. I looked to Mustang, who held out a hand and waved me towards him, his shouts sounding more and more desperate.
“Leah! Come on! Move! You have to get out of there, the whole house is off its supports. It’s going to get washed out to the river, and then it will be too late. We have to move now!”
I got out of bed and stepped towards the staircase, paralyzed by fear at the edge of the top step. I watched the slowly rising water as it came closer and closer to the middle of the staircase.
“Leah! Don’t be afraid! Come to me!”
Mustang pleaded with his hand stretched out towards me. His cries were useless. I was frozen in fear and couldn’t move.
“Come towards me! I’m right here.”
I finally looked at Mustang, blinking my eyes to clear the fog that had grabbed me. I shook my head rapidly back and forth, too terrified to even speak. I started to back away from the water instead of going towards Mustang.
“No! Don’t go back up,” he yelled. “Hurry this way!”
He broke out the rest of the window glass with his bare hand and crawled through, landing with a splash and going underwater for a second.
I screamed.
As he came up from below the brown, muddy water, my heart began beating again. Mustang clawed his way over to the staircase and climbed toward me, clutching his bleeding hand to his chest.
“Come here, sweetheart,” he urged as he reached the top step, breathing hard, “we have to get out of here. I’m going to hold onto you and it will be fine. Just close your eyes and don’t turn me loose.”
He pulled me with him before I had a chance to protest and purposely threw me towards the ice-cold water, giving me no choice. I dug my nails into the fabric of his shirt sleeve as he dragged us through the water to the window.
This time he was able to unlock it and slide the bottom half of the now-empty frame open to push me through. He immediately followed, swimming in front of me and pulling me by the wrist through the thick dirty water. I kicked weakly, instinctively trying to help even though I’d never learned to swim.
Mustang let the movement of the water carry us away from the house, knowing that if it came loose, it would push us under and we would drown.
He did his best to keep my head above water, even as the churning water pushed him under.
We were shoved along violently by the current of the flood until Mustang smacked his head painfully against something very solid. The impact caused him to lose his grip on me.
I screamed as I was dragged away, and it was enough to bring Mustang back to his senses.
He pushed himself away from the solid object and flung himself through the water in my direction. His hand connected with my upper arm. He dragged me back towards him when we were suddenly shoved against a tree limb. Mustang managed to get one arm around the thick limb.
“You have to hold on!” Mustang yelled to me above the deafening roar of the water. “Hold onto me and put your other arm here!”
I did as I was told, grabbing Mustang around the neck and wrapping my free arm around the limb.
“Now climb up!”
He pushed on my backside to give me enough leverage to pull myself up out of the water as far as the thick branch. I had a wide enough perch to be able to hold my head up out of the quickly moving water.
Mustang followed me, placing both hands on another branch high above his head. He did a chin-up to reach it, giving him enough room to slide his leg up and over the limb until he dangled over the water.
My erratic breathing began to slow down as I saw Mustang’s dark outline get out of the water. I knew he would be pulling me up higher soon, and that he would hold me close and keep me safe until this was all over.
Suddenly I heard a sickening, cracking sound.
I screamed as his tree limb broke.
“Mustang!”
All I heard was a loud splash directly below me as he fell back into the dark, swiftly moving water.
“Mustang!” I screamed again and again.
I strained my ears to listen for his reply.
Nothing.
I struggled to see out into the darkness for any sign of movement, while calling for him until my voice was hoarse from yelling.
Mustang couldn’t be gone.
He was strong, a survivor.
A sniper who couldn’t be killed.
There was no way he would be taken from me now.
Not when we’d only just found each other.
Life wouldn’t be so fucking cruel.
I leaned onto the trunk of the tree and pulled my legs as close as I could to the limb, lowering my head to my elbows and crying.
Mustang was gone.