Eden's Present by Adam Carpenter

Author:Adam Carpenter
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Ellora's Cave Publishing Inc.
Published: 2014-02-28T00:00:00+00:00

Part Two

A Stranger in His Bed

Chapter Eight

So this was how freedom felt.

He’d let his hair grow out a bit these past two weeks and today it was flipping in the wild wind like wings about to allow him flight. Atop a sturdy, beautiful mare that craved the open land as much as Chad did, he journeyed deep in the dense woods behind his uncle’s Rolling Hills Ranch, unsure of which direction they were headed, not caring either. It was almost as if he’d put his trust into Sadie, a powerful animal with a derisive snort, and to give in to such a feeling was a big step right now for a still-wounded Chad Singleton. Betrayed by family, by employers, by his lover and friends, ultimately by himself, he’d never felt so alone in the world. So now, riding this creature as it sought out something untenable out there in the broad, cerulean sky, he welcomed its spirit, bonded over its sense of wanderlust.

The land was mostly flat as Sadie galloped along, Chad urging her on with cries and with a quick clutch of her belly. The saddle secure, his hold tight on the reins, he directed the horse toward the banks of the Adam’s River and it was there they followed a trail used by hikers and bicyclists, but today they were thankfully alone. It was a Sunday morning, early, not even eight. He had awakened at six, like he did most days lately, some of them in which he’d been at the office by seven, others in which he’d taken Uncle Aldous up on his offer of coming to the ranch for a ride. Of the horses to choose from, Chad had somehow bonded with Sadie. It was a look in her dark eyes within the dimly lit stable that had won him, a lost sense he easily related to.

This was their sixth journey into the lands beyond Eden. And while in his dreams he and Sadie never returned, they had always done so.

Despite the drama that was his life, responsibility still ate at Chad.

“Come on, babe, let’s go. See what you’ve got.”

It was almost as if Sadie understood him, or maybe she just felt his desire for speed. She picked up the pace, racing east while the river’s current carried the water west, but even that reverse jet stream couldn’t halt their forward progress. Wherever it was they were going, they were arriving with amazing agility and determination. Above them, the sun continued to rise on a beautiful day filled with promise, a feeling he hadn’t matched since that disastrous meeting with Markus and Preston Burrows. Even today, he didn’t like to think about it, except that his mind replayed a constant reel. What stuck with him most was the devastation he’d seen in Brett’s eyes when he’d walked in on Chad and Preston in the carriage house.

“Forget it, forget him,” Chad said. “Go, Sadie, take me anywhere.”

They were coming to an incline thick with overgrown grass, a copse of trees forming in the nearby distance.

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