Walker: Secrets

Chapter 68

*Slight TW for cutting but it's not major*

'Colton!' She called again, her heart racing. 'Oh my God... Colton!'

Colton was lying on his back down on the ledge below, still un-moving. 

'Stay calm... Stay calm....' Maddie told herself as she tried not to panic, trying to think of what to do. She had to get down to him. She had to see if he was okay. The thought that maybe the fall had killed him passed briefly through her mind but she pushed that aside. No. She wouldn't think of that. He would be alright. 

He was alright.

The fall had just knocked him unconscious.

'Colton!' She called again, trying to get some kind of response. 'Colton, god dammit! Answer me!'

Nothing.

She had to do something.

She had to get down to him.

He was down a fair way, lying on a ledge a few feet wide. He had obviously tried to stop his fall judging from the disturbed dirt and rocks and it looked like he had slid down the steep incline instead of free falling. Her heart was still racing as she untied her rope from the saddle and dropped it to the ground. It would be just long enough, she hoped. 

Taking her saddlebags off from behind the saddle she dropped them to the ground beside her rope then did the same with her water bottle holder. She would need them down there. 'Down Dakota. Down.' She cued the mustang to lay, with her whip, the mare carefully lying down there near the edge and Maddie slid out of the saddle and onto the ground. Edging herself closer to the edge she looked down, trying again to get some kind of response from Colton.

Still nothing.

With shaking hands she pulled her phone from her pocket to call for help then groaned with frustration. No signal. Her phone was useless. Looking back at Colton she tried to think of how else to alert someone they needed help. Yes, they were to meet the others back at the trail cut off at four but that was still a couple hours from now. They wouldn't start to get worried or start looking till a couple hours after that.

They needed help now.

Her phone went back into her pocket, her hands finding her knife in its pouch on her belt. Taking it out she opened it then rolled up her sleeve and drew it across the back side of her arm. Crimson flowed from the cut and she ran her arm down across the saddle, transferring the blood to the leather. Someone would see the mare without her and she hoped by adding the blood to the saddle that they would take that as they needed help and quickly. Blood dripped freely from the cut she had made as she tied the reins to the horn and she wiped her arm over the saddle once more. Hopefully someone would see it.

'Up Dakota.' She cued, the mare rising. 'Go home.' She told her, waving her arms wildly to shew the mare away. 'Go home!

Dakota looked at her, then backed away a couple steps snorting. 

Grabbing a small rock, Maddie threw it at the mare. 'Go on! Go home!' The mare still hesitated and she picked up another rock, hating that she had to do it but she had no other choice. 'Go home!'

This time, the rock hit the mare square on the nose and with a squeal, Dakota turned and bolted along the trail that Blue had long disappeared down. Without time to feel sorry for throwing a rock at her mare she looked back down at Colton. He was still motionless which was probably for the best until she got herself down there. The ledge wasn't that wide but it was providential it was there for it had stopped him falling any further.

Once the saddlebags and her water bottle had been dropped down she dragged herself over to a stump near the trail and tied her rope around it tightly. The other end she tied around her waist and after checking that it was secure enough, slowly and carefully moved nearer to the edge.