Unending Devotion (Michigan Brides #1)(60)
Daisy hesitated.
“You’re gonna be fine,” she whispered. “I won’t let anything happen to you.”
“If Carr catches me, he’ll kill me.” Her frightened gaze darted around the yard, as if she expected him to jump out of the shadows.
“He’ll have to kill me first.” Lily patted the stool. “Now hop on up.”
Daisy clambered up, fumbling to stand and reach for the gate.
“It’s gonna be all right.” Lily hoisted Daisy and at the same time used her body to steady the three-legged stool. She tried not to think about how she was going to manage getting over the gate by herself once Daisy was on the other side.
Shards of sleet pelted Lily, and a gust of wind pierced through her layer of shirts, sending shivers up and down her limbs. A sudden scurry of fur near her feet made her jump. She caught sight of the long skinny tail of a rat before it disappeared into a nearby pile of garbage.
“Hurry,” she called hoarsely, stifling a shudder.
For what seemed an eternity, Daisy struggled over the top of the gate, first scraping her bare legs, getting her coat hooked on the edge, and then afraid to let go and fall the distance on the other side.
When Daisy finally made it over, Lily tried to climb onto the broken stool, but she couldn’t keep it from tipping over. With mounting frustration, she returned to the yard and walked among the debris until she found a broken crate.
She jammed the crate under the stool in place of the missing leg. Even though it tilted at an awkward angle, it didn’t budge. She managed to pull herself up, grab on to the top of the gate, and hook first one leg over and then the other.
Daisy stared up at her, shaking like a wild flower in a spring breeze. She didn’t move to help her—not that Lily expected her to—not in her condition.
Just as she began to lower herself down the other side, a faint shout came from the tavern and another light popped to life in one of the upstairs windows.
Lily’s stomach clenched into a tight ball. Someone had discovered that Daisy was gone.
Her pulse burst forward. She jumped, snagging Oren’s trousers on one of the slats of the gate. She wrenched the fabric. It gave way with a sharp rip, and she fell to the ground with a thud that jolted her gut and knocked the breath from her.
“Let’s go,” she gasped, struggling to push herself up. They were going to have to run for their lives.
Would they have time to reach the livery behind the Northern?
When she’d done her planning the day before, she’d decided the best way to get Daisy out of Harrison was to use Oren’s cutter. She wouldn’t steal it—just borrow it temporarily, like she’d done with his clothes. And even though he’d be stranded for a few days until she could return the cutter, she had the feeling he’d understand. At least she hoped he would.
Another shout broke the silence of the Stockade, this one louder.
Daisy’s eyes widened. Her trembling fingers grasped Lily’s, and she glanced frantically toward the rocky hill that spread out before them.
In the darkness the uneven shapes of the stones crouched like ghouls waiting to pounce on them.
Lily choked down her fear. They had no choice but to descend the hill, a barren, open stretch of land that separated them from the town and from anyplace they could take cover and hide.
With the echoes of more shouts on the other side of the palisade, Lily charged down the hill, pulling Daisy along behind her, dodging stones and shards of smashed bottles. When they reached the bottom, she didn’t pause to look back at the Stockade. Instead, she stumbled onward toward the edge of town. Behind her Daisy’s breath came in heaving gasps and her steps grew sluggish, slowing them down.
“I have to stop.” Daisy choked out the words and bent over, holding her side.
Lily chanced a glance toward the Stockade. A man stepped through the gate and held up a lantern. The light cast gyrating flickers over the dark hill.
He was looking for Daisy. No doubt about it.
Lily’s heart dipped with dread. “We can’t rest now.”
Daisy followed the direction of her gaze and gave a soft gasp. “Are they looking for me already?”
The man with the lantern had started down the long hill, holding the light high. The shouts of several more men behind him echoed in the stillness of the night.
“What are we going to do?” Daisy’s voice trembled with panic. “I don’t want to face Carr’s brass knuckles. I’ve seen what he can do with them, and I wouldn’t be able to bear it.”
Lily’s mind raced. How could she cross to the other side of Main Street to the Northern Hotel without being detected? And how would she be able to get Daisy out of Harrison tonight if she didn’t get Oren’s sleigh?
They had to make it out while it was still dark. At first light, if not sooner, Carr would have his men out searching every road leading to and from Harrison.
Lily clutched her sister’s hand. She dragged the girl past overturned stumps left from the destruction of the forest in years past. Their roots swirled into the air like a thousand frozen snakes.
“Please, Lily,” Daisy whispered, tears sliding down her cheeks. “Please don’t let him get me.”
The voices of the men grew louder and closer. The light from the lantern would soon reveal them. And how could they possibly run away from Carr’s men—when Daisy was already tired?