Yellowstone Heart Song (Yellowstone Romance Series Book 1) Read Free Page A

she broken any bones? What if the bear followed her down the canyon? Cautiously, she raised her head, and gazed up the cliff. The predator was nowhere in sight. Her lungs finally allowed for a deep breath of relief.  She turned her head slowly to the side, facing away from the rock wall. The bottom of the canyon still gaped hundreds of feet below her. A narrow ledge had stopped her full descent. 
    She lay still for a moment longer while her breathing and heart rate normalized. She tried to rise to her feet, but searing hot pain shot through her right ankle. She couldn’t suppress a cry of pain. Tears stung her eyes, and she bit down on her lower lip, then sank back to the ground. Any hope that she would wake up to reality vanished instantly. No one could be in this much pain in a dream.
    Aimee scooted back from the edge of the narrow outcropping, and pulled her backpack free of a pine branch.  There was no way she would have survived a fall all the way down the canyon. Her arms trembled, and she slumped against the canyon wall. Staring at the little pine, she reached out and touched the sparse branches, silently thanking the tree for stopping her fall.
    Stay calm. Don’t panic . Her mantra replayed itself over and over in her mind. She mentally took stock of her options. Down was definitely out of the question. She would never make it. It was simply too steep. Getting back to the top might be an impossible task with her injury. And if she did manage it, the bear was still a problem.
    The odds of anyone finding her here were less than zero. Perhaps in a hundred years or so, someone would discover her skeletal remains, creating all kinds of speculation regarding her twenty-first century effects.
    The urge to scream in frustration, and at the same time give in to her growing fear, and cry raced through her. Taking a deep breath instead, she leaned forward to unlace her hiking boot, and pried it from her injured foot. Her hands ached and trembled, and were covered in bleeding cuts and gashes.
    “I must look great,” she scoffed, trying in vain to lighten the mood.
    Her foot throbbed as she gingerly prodded and examined it. Being able to move it at the ankle was a good sign that it wasn’t broken. Her medical training compelled her to stabilize and wrap the joint. From a survivalist point of view, she needed to keep her boot on if she hoped to get out of this canyon. During her backcountry first aid training, she’d learned that a boot gave a sprained ankle adequate stability in an emergency. She slipped it back on, gritting her teeth as she tightened the laces. Later - and there would be a later, - after getting safely off this cliff, she would wrap her foot with the ace bandage that was in her medical kit.
    Aimee struggled to stand, hugging the wall of rocks, using them for support as she pulled herself up. If she lost her balance . . . She’d never get this lucky a second time if she fell off this ledge. Standing on her injured foot proved impossible. Without the ability to bear full weight, climbing out of the canyon would be nearly impossible. Emitting a loud growl in frustration, she eased herself back to the ground, and rummaged through her medical kit for a bottle of ibuprofen.
    “Maybe if I take a large enough dose, I can get up this damn mountain!” she shouted into the wind, her voice echoing off the canyon walls. Her calls sent several startled ravens that were perched on some outcroppings soaring into the sky. They squawked loudly in protest. Aimee grabbed for some rocks within her reach, and forcefully threw them deeper into the canyon in anger. Whatever possessed you to tell Zach you could do something like this on your own? Were you out of your mind! Damn it, I’m not going to panic!
    The hours dragged on with excruciating slowness. Aimee licked her dry and cracking lips. Dehydration happened very quickly at this altitude. Her empty stomach growled loudly in protest, but water was more important at the