Cattle stealing -- Juvenile fiction; Cowboys -- Juvenile fiction; Ranch life -- Juvenile fiction; Western stories
Teddy shook his head to clear it, then pressed his hand to his lips
to keep back a cry of agony. He must not give in. But, for a moment,
the boy fell back upon the rock, breathing hard.
When he raised himself again the searing sensations at the back of
his head had turned to dull, aching pain. Gingerly, the boy moved
first one leg, and then the other. They seemed all right. Neither of
his arms was broken. Taking a deep breath, Teddy determined to
stand. It was easy--just bend one leg under him, lean on his elbow,
and push upward. Then his head would have to come along, no matter
how much it wanted to lie quietly on the cool rocks. Now--one, two,
three! He was up!
Wondering how long his legs would support him, Teddy leaned weakly
against a wall of rock. Steady, now! He’d have to figure this thing
out. Here he was in a prison of rock. On three sides there arose the
bare, hard granite. The front of this rocky cubicle was open, and
Teddy staggered to the edge and looked over. Below him yawned a
sheer drop of two or three hundred feet. Now the question was, how
in thunder did he get here?
He had fallen, that was one sure thing. No doubt about that, Teddy
thought, as he looked ruefully at his torn clothes and bruised and
bleeding hands. But how did he get so sliced up? A fall would never
have done that. The fall could have caused that cut on his head, but
not these rents in his clothes. Why, he looked as though he’d been
put through a meat-chopper.
If his head would stop whirling for a moment he might be able to
figure this out! Think, now. Thirsty--yes, he was thirsty. Awfully
thirsty. He must find some water. A spring. A spring! Why, he was
looking for a spring! That’s what happened! He and Roy were thirsty,
so they separated, trying to find that spring! Then that slide!
A shudder passed over Teddy’s body. Memory returned with a rush, and
with it came desperate realization. He was trapped here, alone, and
he had no way to tell Roy and the others where he was! Suppose they
never found him? Suppose the horse he had fallen from wandered far
off and misled the others in their search? Teddy gave a shiver. Then
he straightened up. Have to cut that out. He had been in worse fixes
than this, and he always had gotten out all right. He would this
time, too. Dad and Roy would surely find him. If he only had some
water! He was burning up.
He put his hand to his head and brought it away covered with a dark,
sticky substance. Blood! No wonder it ached so. He’d have to find
some water and bathe it.
Over to the right was some sort of a depression in the rock. Perhaps
there was water there! Hope surging high within him, the ranch boy
staggered toward the spot and, with a cry of joy, flung himself face
downward beside a pool of sparkling water. He buried his face in it,
and drank in great gulps.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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