Medium At Large by Patti Larsen

Author:Patti Larsen
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Patti Larsen Books

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Chapter Seventeen

I honestly don’t think the private was trying to harm me in any way and, when I tumbled head over heels into the large pile of hay below, the soft if dusty cushion breaking my fall, I was certain his spirit had, instead, been trying to warn me of something, not terrify me into my literal downfall.

However, his appearance had a negative result and, as I flipped over on my way down, I caught sight of him still lurking above me, staring down at me while gravity decided my fate. It’s immensely odd how time can seem to slow its passage and interfere with what normally feels like the plodding and predictable ticking of seconds. This particular experience with slow-motion allowed me to not only take in the lingering echo above but the startled face of Deputy Marty Deagon when she spun toward me, eyes huge in the low light, mouth agape in a dark circle, clearly visible and, might I say, embedded in my memory even as I fell into the pile of hay and felt it envelop me in scratchy protection.

I did cry out as I hit the bottom, slipping through the loosely piled stack of old foliage, my wrist suddenly on fire as it struck the wooden floor under me at an odd angle. I struggled to breathe, gasping for air in the thickened offering deep under the mass of hay, grateful I wasn’t allergic and yet certain if I didn’t escape within seconds I’d suffocate.

A hand grasped my leg and jerked on me, pulling me off balance and yet out of the hay in a sliding motion that left me with bruises on my backside. I cradled my wrist after an attempt to use it to rise, knowing tears leaked out at the pain, looking up at the annoyed expression on Marty’s red face.

“What are you doing here?” She jerked me to my feet, apparently without regard for my injury. “You could have been killed.” The deputy shook faintly, her own adrenaline racing, it was obvious, just as mine was. Marty didn’t release me, shaking me a little and I didn’t fight her, still in shock, the fire in my wrist burning a hole in my ability to respond. “I saw someone sneaking in here,” she said, as if owing me an explanation, now spinning me and pushing me toward the exit, her bulky body allowing no opposition to our forced retreat. “You’re lucky I was here.”

I didn’t comment on the fact her appearance had been part of the reason I’d fallen, sliding instead into the back seat of her cruiser yet again, blinking into the light. My rental car was a fair walk from the barn, and I really didn’t feel like arguing with her as she slammed her driver’s door and fired up the engine.

“I’m taking you to the hospital,” she grunted, glancing at me in the rearview mirror, finally seeming to notice I wasn’t hale and hearty. “Get you checked out.” She spun the tires on gravel, aggressive driving a physical manifestation of her upset.

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