Horizons Read Online Free PDF

disintegrated as quickly as it had flared, an d she wilted in his arms. “I… I’m sorry. I don’t know why I’m acting this way. Especially right now.”
    He steadied her before releasing her. “Probably a result of the adrenaline,” he said, somber shadows etching his features once more. “Everyone reacts differently to a crisis.”
    “I … I’m okay now,” she assured him, though still flustered.
    He forced a smile. “Good. Don’t want you going off the deep end. All of us are going to need our wits about us, and we’ve all got to pitch in and help one another.”
    “So, are we headin’ for the beach, or what?” the big man drawled in his thick southern accent. “Time’s a-wastin’.” They took a quick vote. Only the soldier held out.
    “Tell you what, Corporal,” Zach suggested. “You help get the others down. Then, if you want to come back up here and man a signal fire or so mething, that’s your choice, bu t for now, we all might be better off sticking together.”
    Three of their number—a man, a woman, and a teenage boy, all unconscious—were totally incapacitated. Additionally, the steward’s left leg was badly broken. With help, he’d managed to hobble this far, in excruciating pain. He certainly couldn’t negotiate the rough terrain ahead without aid. Of the men, this left Zach, the corporal, and the newly liberated prisoner with the least serious injuries. Not that they’d escaped unscathed, by any means. The soldier’s hand was broken. Zach’s shoulder was dislocated and at least a couple of his ribs were fractured. Even the giant had broken his nose and was sporting a goose egg on his forehead the size of a softball. And these were just their most obvious wounds.
    The women had fared only a little better. Among a variety of scrapes and bruises, Kelly suspected she had a slight concussion. Her vision kept blurring, off and on, and she wasn’t as steady on her feet as she was usually. Alita had a long gash along one leg, and kept holding her left elbow. The older woman, now in a fuzzy state of nearshock, was favoring her ribs. The fourth lady was limping on an ankle swelled three times its normal size. Her face was flecked with tiny nicks, the blood now congealed and dried in little blobs. The toddler, though fretful, appeared to have escaped relatively unharmed.
    The corporal agreed, reluctantly.
    “Okay, let’s take stock,” Zach proposed. “We’ve got three unconscious persons and three semi-able men to carry them. Kelly, you take charge of the old lady. Guide her along. Help her over the rough spots and make sure she doesn’t wander off by herself and get lost. You …” Zach gestured toward the woman with the toddler.
    “Blair,” the woman supplied. “Blair Chevalier.”
    Zach nodded. “Blair, you handle the child. Alita, that leaves you to lend a hand with the steward.”
    “If you can find me something to use for a crutch, I can hobble along fairly well on my own,” the man said.
    “Can someone help me with the stuff in my bundle?” Kelly asked. “It weighs more than I thought it would, and I’m sure there are things inside we might need.”
    “Like what?” the felon inquired, scanning the pile of purses with masculine scorn. “Eye shadow and lipstick?”
    Kelly scowled at him. “No, you overgrown sexist. Like aspirin and tweezers and maybe even a few band-aids. Safety pins to secure bandages. Even tampons can be used in place of cotton balls.”
    At this, the man’s face, somewhat ruddy by nature, flushed to a dull shade of red. “Yeah, okay. I get the point.”
    “I can take some of it,” Blair offered. “And if we could fashion one of those jackets or blankets into a sling for the baby, so I could carry her on my back, it would help free up my hands.”
    “Make another bundle into a backpack for me,” the steward suggested.
    A short time later, they were ready to depart. As one they turned, taking one last look at the burning plane— all