Dangerous Decision Missing Scenes

by Ellen S.

This is a missing scene from “Dangerous Decision.” It begins from the point when Andi and Jed Hatton ride away for Mexico and Justin is left with Sheriff Tate on the street.

Justin Carter watched as his littlest sister galloped away until she was only a speck in the distance. Then he turned to Sheriff Tate, who looked as bewildered and upset as he felt.

 “What can we do now, Russ?” Justin asked him. “Surely we can go after them?”

 “Surely we can, and surely we will,” the sheriff agreed hurriedly.

 “Shall we go gather some men, then?”

 “I think that is—”

 “Howdy, Justin, Russ!”

 The men were interrupted by a cheery greeting. Chad and Mitch had just rode up, but obviously hadn’t seen or heard of what had recently occurred, for both wore grins and looked excited about beginning the promised search for Jed.

 “Sorry we took so long to get here,” Mitch apologized.

 “We’re all ready to go after Jed Hatton,” Chad added eagerly. His smile vanished when he saw the looks his brother and the sheriff sported. “What’s wrong?”

 “Jed Hatton was just here,” Justin explained. “He invaded the schoolhouse and took Virginia Foster hostage. But then Andi offered to take her place and . . .” His voice trailed off.

 But Chad understood. “Did that outlaw take our sister?” he exploded, hopping onto the ground, his face screwed up in fury and his fists clenched.

 When Justin nodded, Mitch slid from his own horse’s back, his expression grim and angry. But his question was full of wonder and pride in his sister. “Andi took Virginia’s place, after all Virginia had done to her?” Way to go, sis!

 “She did,” Sheriff Tate spoke up. “She’s a brave young lady.”

 “That she is.” Justin turned to his brothers. “We’ll need to form a posse together and get her back.”

 “Yes,” Sheriff Tate said. “But I believe it would be best to go with as few men as possible, so we follow them quicker.”

 “Great idea, Russ. How ’bout us, you, and a few of your deputies?” Mitch suggested.

 “Sounds good.”

 “Yes, that sounds good, Mitch,” Justin chimed in. “But I think one of us should ride back to the ranch and give Mother the news.”

 “I’ll do it.”

 The foursome turned and looked into the face of Mr. Foster, who was holding a handkerchief to his lip and had a dark, purple-brown bruise forming on his forehead.

“I’ll do it,” he repeated. “After all, I am sure Mrs. Carter is entitled to an explanation, and I should be the one to give it, since I am responsible for Andrea during school hours. And”— his voice shook—“she, no doubt, just saved my daughter’s life.”

 “All right, Mr. Foster, thank you,” Justin said.

 The schoolmaster nodded and scurried off to borrow a horse and buggy from the livery. “Let’s head out now,” Chad said once their messenger had gone. “Before it’s too late.”

 So the two deputies, several horses, and some supplies were gathered and they set off at a gallop, each praying under his breath for Andi’s safety and a quick and successful search for Mr. Hatton.

**********

 Elizabeth and Melinda Carter were in the kitchen, peeling apples with Nila and Luisa, when they heard the pounding of a horse’s hooves outside.

“We have a visitor,” Elizabeth said. “We best get ready to greet him.”

 The ladies washed the sticky apple juice from their fingers and removed their splattered aprons just before a knock sounded on the door. Elizabeth opened it—and stopped short.

Melinda came to her side and stared at the man standing on the porch. Oh, Andi, Melinda thought, what trouble have you gotten into now that would send the schoolmaster to our doorstep?

 “Why, hello, Gerald,” Elizabeth said. “What brings you here? Is something wrong at the schoolhouse? Where is Andrea?”

 Mr. Foster held up a hand. “Please hold the questions, Mrs. Carter. I’m afraid I have some disturbing news and should like to tell it to you with no interruption.”

 “Of course.” Elizabeth felt an invisible fist squeeze at her heart. Obviously, something was very wrong—and it probably had something to do with her youngest daughter.

Beside her, Melinda stiffened.

“Today, we had a visitor,” Mr. Foster began shakily, “and it was none other than Jed Hatton.”

 Elizabeth gasped, and Mr. Foster gave a small nod. “Yes, Mrs. Carter, I’m afraid it was him. He was all in a dither and stayed in our classroom for quite some time, waiting for the posse to catch up with him. But then your son, the sheriff, and some townsfolk showed up, and Jed was beyond crazy with fear.

 “He grabbed Virginia and told us that he would take her with him so he could protect himself. I knew not what to do, Mrs. Carter. But Andrea did. When Jed slapped my daughter, she sprang from her seat and said that Virginia would be no use to him out in the wilderness, what with her delicate constitution and all. Then she did an unexpected thing. She offered to take Virginia’s place as Jed’s hostage.

 “Jed then knocked me unconscious so I am not quite sure how it happened, but Jed agreed to swap them. So now”—Mr. Foster took a deep breath, swallowed hard, and wiped away the perspiration on his brow—“she is riding off with Jed Hatton, because the courageous young lady wanted to save my daughter’s life. She was a brave girl, Mrs. Carter, certainly the bravest in the whole class. I—I owe her Virginia’s life.”

 Elizabeth’s face had blanched at the retelling. Feeling faint, she dropped into a chair and buried her head into her hands. “Oh, Andrea,” she murmured.

 “Your sons and several others are after her now, Mrs. Carter,” Mr. Foster assured her, distraught at seeing the woman so upset. “I am sure she’ll be fine. Like I said, she is a very brave girl. And please don’t be angry with her. She deserves nothing but my heartiest thanks, and the pride of us all. She did the right thing, though I’m sure she didn’t feel like doing it.”

 “Yes, Gerald, you’re right,” Elizabeth agreed, raising her head to face the schoolmaster. “She is a very courageous young lady.” She smiled shakily and pulled a handkerchief from her pocket to dab away her tears. “I am nothing but proud of her, though perhaps a bit worried about her health and safety.”

 “As am I,” Melinda said suddenly, wiping at her own tears with her hankie. “I hope the boys find her. If you’ll excuse me?”

 Elizabeth nodded at her, and Melinda scurried to her room to pray and cry for her sister in solitude.

Mr. Foster said good-bye, tipped his hat, and left, leaving Elizabeth, Luisa, and Nila in the kitchen, each silently weeping.

 Dear Lord, Elizabeth prayed desperately, please, please protect my Andrea. Keep her safe, and help the men find her. Please.

*********

  “Where could they be?” Chad muttered.

  The posse sat around a dying campfire, finishing off a meager supper of beans and jerky. They had searched all evening without success, and now the tired men planned on a night of sleep, resuming their search in the morning.

 “I don’t know where they could be, Chad,” Justin answered. He was staring into his tin cup of cooling coffee with a face etched with regret and deep thought. He shook his head and sighed. “I wish I did.”

 Justin threw the rest of his coffee into the fire and watched the flames as if the answer would be hidden there. “I wish I did,” he repeated. Oh, Lord, help us find them!

**********

 The next morning found the men quickly gulping down a breakfast and continuing their search. They moved slowly, watching the ground for any trace of where Andi and her captor could be.

 They moved along the sandy grounds and then rougher ones, and finally entered a rocky area. “Surely they couldn’t have gone this far, could they have?” a deputy said as his horse stumbled over yet another stone.

 “I don’t know,” Mitch said from the deputy’s side, “but I’m not taking any chances of missing them.”

 “Agreed,” said Chad and Justin and Sheriff Tate together.

 “Hey, Russ, look!” cried the other deputy, reining his horse to a stop a little ways ahead of them.

 The others quickly spurred their horses over and eyed what the deputy was pointing at. A small creek bubbled noisily, but what their attention was drawn to was a single ribbon on the nearby rocks. The blue ribbon had been tossed in the wind and had caught upon a small branch.

  “It’s Andi’s!” Mitch exclaimed, fingering the ribbon. “It has to be! We’re on the right trail!”

 “Thank God,” Justin murmured.

 “C’mon, men,” urged Sheriff Tate. “Let’s go get our Andi back and arrest that criminal!”

********

 The posse had moved onward for what felt like hours—which it was—and their earlier enthusiasm had dwindled after so long a time of unsuccessful searching. The Carter brothers were slumped in their saddles, close to despair.

 “Why haven’t we found ’em yet?” Mitch asked without really expecting an answer. His brothers shrugged and shook their heads.

 “Hey, fellas!” Sheriff Tate hollered from ahead. His voice was tinged with excitement. “I think I’ve found something!”

 “What?” Chad demanded as they caught up to the sheriff.

 In response, Sheriff Tate pointed. “Over here,” he said excitedly. “Looks like they set up camp here last night. At least we’re on the right trail.”

 Quicker than a wink the Carters had galloped over, followed almost as quickly by the sheriff and his deputies. But they realized instantly that Jed wasn’t there. Nor Andi.

 Just in case, the rescuers dismounted and began a careful search.

 “What happened here?” Sheriff Tate walked over to a tree and pulled down a canteen. “Looks like they left in a hurry. Why would they leave all this behind?”

 No one answered him, as they were all thinking the same thing. Justin and Chad wandered around with a deputy while Mitch and another deputy went over to a small, scraggly brush.

 “Over here!” cried the deputy near Mitch. “I found a horse. It’s the palomino.”

 It’s Taffy, Mitch knew at once. So where is—

 Suddenly, his eye snagged on a small boot peeping out of the bushes. He dropped on his hands and knees and crawled over—and came face-to-face with his sister. “Andi!” he exclaimed, astonished. A grin cracked across his face. Thank you, Lord! Thank you!

 The shocked, unknowing look that Andi was staring at him with puzzled him, but all he cared about then was that he’d found her. “I’m sure glad to see you,” he said. “Come on out and tell us what happened. Where’s Jed?” Eagerly, he reached out a hand to help her, then called to his brothers, “Over here, Justin, Chad!”

 But Andi pulled away from his help, staring at him with haunted eyes. It scared Mitch, and he knew that something was wrong. “What’s the matter?” Then he saw the pool of blood on the ground and trickling down her hair and clothes. His smile disappeared as quickly as it had come. “Justin! There’s blood all over the place.”

 Justin ran over and saw what Mitch had seen. No, no, he thought. If that man has injured my sister… His thoughts trailed off as he felt his jaw tighten. What was important now was that Andi was taken care of.

 “Go away,” she whispered.

 Justin took a step back. What’s wrong with her? Doesn’t she know me? “Take it easy, honey,” he said in a soothing voice. “We didn’t mean to frighten you. We’ve come to take you home.”

This next scene takes place after Justin had assured Andi she’d soon be safe and she becomes unconscious in his arms…

“Can we head back, Russ, while your men continue the search?” Justin asked as soon as his sister’s eyes had fluttered shut. “Andi’s wound needs attention straightaway.”

 “Of course.” Sheriff Tate nodded. “We should be able to manage. You need to have Doc Weaver tend Andi’s wound at once.”

 Justin hoisted himself onto his horse’s back, careful not to drop his wounded sister. Chad climbed onto Sky and accepted Taffy’s lead rope from Mitch, who clambered upon Chase, his eyes riveted on Andi the entire time.

 “Will she be all right, Justin?” Mitch inquired.

 “I hope,” came Justin’s reply, shaky with fear. “I hope.” He looked at Andi’s face, which was contorted in pain even in her sleep, and sighed deeply. Oh, how badly he felt responsible!

 “Did she really not know who we were?” Chad brought his horse beside Justin’s as they began to gallop towards Fresno.

 “I don’t think she did,” Justin admitted. “Injuries in the head can be”—he swallowed—“serious.”

 “Don’t worry, big brother,” Mitch said. “I’m sure she’ll be fine.” But his voice and the look on his face betrayed his own anxiety.

********

 The Carters galloped all the way back to Fresno, arriving early the next morning. They picked up Doc Weaver and headed for the ranch.

 On arriving, they took their horses to the barn and left them with Diego, who was starting his chores. When he saw Andi, blood still trickling from her hair and her face pale and twisted with pain, he muttered a hasty prayer in Spanish and said, “Oh, no. What is wrong with Miss Andi?”

 “We think she’s been shot, Diego,” Justin explained before scurrying to the house with Mitch, Chad, and the doctor at his heels.

 When they entered the kitchen, Elizabeth was bent over the table, fast asleep. A lamp was burning off the last of its oil nearby, and the boys figured she’d been up late praying.

 Mitch shook her, and, with a moan, Elizabeth raised her head. “Oh, Mitchell,” she said, wide awake immediately. “Have you all come back? Is Andrea safe?”

 “Yes, we’ve all come back, Mother,” Mitch assured her. “However, Andi has been shot and needs attention. We brought the doctor.”

 Elizabeth rose and started giving directions. “Quick,” she instructed Justin, “take her to her room. John, let me have your coat. Chad and Mitchell, you both look ready to collapse. Go to bed.”

 With a nod of consent, Chad and Mitch cast one last glance at Andi and then stumbled off to their rooms. Justin, Doc Weaver, and Elizabeth went to Andi’s room and laid her in bed.

 While Doc Weaver inspected his patient and went through his supplies, Justin informed Elizabeth of what all had occurred since they’d found her.

 “Do you think she’s lost her memory?” Elizabeth asked when he’d finished.

 “I believe so, Mother, though I hope it’s not true.”

 “Me too.” Elizabeth heaved a sigh and gave her son a small smile. “Even if she has, I am thankful she has been found. She will soon be well.” She placed a hand on Justin’s shoulder. “You go on to bed, dear. You look done in.”

 “I will, Mother, as soon as I find out what Doc Weaver has discovered.”

 “All right, Justin.” Elizabeth turned to the doctor, who was just straightening up after kneeling over Andi, a thoughtful frown on his face. “Is she all right, John?”

 “No, Elizabeth, I’m afraid ‘all right’ is not what I would say to describe her condition,” Doc Weaver said. “She has been shot, and by the looks of it the bullet has not left. I will remove it, of course, but there’s always a chance of an infection.”

 “I understand.” Elizabeth eyed her daughter’s face and felt a sob grip her. “I will pray for the best.”

 “As will I,” said Justin. He quietly left the room, tears in his eyes and a prayer forming in his head. Dear Lord, please heal Andi quickly. Keep away any infection, and please don’t let her memory be lost.

 After Justin had left, Elizabeth turned away as Doc Weaver began to operate on her daughter. She sat down on a nearby chair and wept softly, whispering a prayer similar to her son’s, ending with, “I thank You that You have brought her this far. If it is Your will, You will bring her the rest of the way.”

ABOUT AN HOUR OR TWO LATER, THE BULLET IS OUT AND WHAT HAPPENS NEXT IS TOLD BY ANDI’S POV IN “ANDREA CARTER AND THE DANGEROUS DECISION”