With quick hands, he tied the reins of her horse to his saddle and picked her up. Her pale and sweating face terrified him. He stuck his foot into the stirrup and, steadying himself, swung his leg over with Tori in his arms.
She whimpered when he sat her up and brushed the loose curls from her face. She already felt warm to the touch. Jesse raced over ground they had just covered. He kept murmuring under his breath, “Hold on, Tori.” Still unconscious, her heart beat rapidly against his chest.
He rode with desperation, and breathed a sigh of relief when the little house they’d passed before came into view. A very pregnant woman hung wash on a line near the back door. Across from her, a man worked on a gate connecting the corral with the barn.
Dust billowed as Jesse yanked on the horse’s reins. Sensing his anxiety, the horse pranced and swung its head nervously as he dismounted. Both the woman and man left their chores and hurried over.
“Snake bite,” Jesse mumbled between the heartbeats throbbing in his throat.
“Bring her in here.” The woman led Jesse up the steps and into the house. Drawn curtains blocked the sun and made the room several degrees cooler. Although a small house in the middle of nowhere, the woman had made it into a comfortable home. A large Bible held a prominent place on a table in the parlor.
She led him into a small room and turned down the bed covers. Everything appeared neat and clean, and a breeze from the open windows gently blew the lace curtains. Jesse laid Tori down. The man joined them in the bedroom, his hand on his wife’s shoulder. They both watched Jesse remove the shoe from her uninjured foot, followed by her stockings. Then he grabbed the pillow to elevate her head.
“Have you sucked the venom out of your wife’s foot?” The woman’s hands rested on her belly, rubbing it slowly.
He nodded, not taking the time to correct her assumption that Tori was his wife.
“I’ll get you some hot water and cloths.” She turned to her husband. “Stephen, can you please make a poultice for her foot?”
“Thank you, ma’am, I appreciate it.” Jesse spoke over his shoulder.
Within minutes, the woman returned with the supplies. Jesse washed the wound. He glanced at Tori. Her pale skin and closed eyes told him she hadn’t regained consciousness. A fine sheen of sweat covered her.
“I think you should remove her clothing. She’ll be more comfortable. If she runs a fever, you’ll need to keep her as cool as possible,” the woman whispered behind him. “Let me know if you need anything else. I’m Catherine Cole, and this is my husband, Stephen.”
“Thank you again, ma’am. I’m Jesse. Jesse Cochran, and this is Tori.” He left off her last name, afraid these nice, God- fearing people wouldn’t allow him to tend to her, and Catherine’s condition prevented her from nursing. “I appreciate your hospitality.”
He removed Tori’s dress, leaving her undergarments. She moaned and rolled her head side to side. Stephen returned with the poultice and left the room. Jesse put it on her ankle, and wrapped it with the clean cloths.
“Mr. Cochran I put the pan of water on the dresser. You should start cooling her off.” Catherine stepped back against the wall, resting her hands on her large belly.
Jesse ran his fingers through his hair and nodded. He took Tori’s cold hand. Lord, she scared him. He’d never dealt with a snake bite before, but knew the basics.
“Tori,” he murmured.
She opened her eyes and blinked, as if trying to clear her vision.
“Where are we? My. . .my foot. My foot, it hurts.” Her eyes grew large and she attempted to sit up.
“We’re at one of the farmhouses we passed earlier.” Jesse eased her back down.
“Why? And my foot. Why does it hurt so much?”
He rubbed her cold hand between his warm ones. “You got bit by a snake. Do you remember?”
“No. My head hurts, too, and I’m hot. So hot.” She plucked at her chemise and moaned again. “Did you take my spectacles?”
“No, honey, you have them on.”
“Everything’s blurry.” She frowned.
“That’s from the snake bite.” Jesse gestured to the other side of the room. “Honey, this is Catherine Cole. She and her husband, Stephen, have been kind enough to let us in so we could take care of your foot.”
She looked wide-eyed at him. A shaky hand went to her mouth. “Jesse, I’m going to be sick.”
Catherine quickly handed him a chamber pot. Jesse held Tori’s hair back as she vomited. After taking the glass of water Catherine passed to him, he helped Tori take a few sips before she rinsed her mouth and spit into the chamber pot. Tori squinted at Jesse, tears running down her face. “I’m sorry. So sorry.”
Jesse eased her back down. “Don’t be silly, Tori. You’re sick.”