“Sure, that bit of woods runs between the base camp and the parking lot.’’ I turned my horse toward the fork, and Jesse followed. The tree-shaded path was wide enough for us to ride two abreast. “That’s a live oak,’’ I pointed toward an ancient specimen, weeping with Spanish moss. “See how its branches grow almost sideways like that? It’s like they’re reaching out to touch all of nature around them.’’
“Cool,’’ she said. “I can see that. The limbs are spread out almost as wide as the tree is tall.’’
I pointed out a couple more things—ground the wild hogs had torn up, digging for roots and bugs with their snouts; a hawk soaring on an air current in a now-clear sky. Mostly, we kept a companionable silence, with me offering words of encouragement or gentle correction. Jesse’s horseback scene was scheduled to be filmed in two more days. That wasn’t much time to bring her skill level to where it needed to be. But I decided not to mention my misgivings to her.
“Is Toby a good rider?’’ I asked.
She shrugged. “Not as good as Greg Tilton, but I think he’s okay.’’
After all the rain, the sky was a washed out blue. Afternoon sun filtered through the trees that grew close to the path, warming my back. Leather creaked. The horses snuffled. A woodpecker drummed against the bark of a slash pine. It was as good a time as any to bring up the subject I wanted to raise with Jesse.
“You know, Toby really seems to like you.’’
She stared at the horn of her saddle, tracing a circle on the top with her thumb.
“Do you like him?’’ I asked.
She nodded, but didn’t raise her eyes to meet mine. “I’m not ready to settle down, though. I just turned twenty-one. Toby’s even younger. I don’t even know who I am yet. I don’t want to be half of some ridiculous Hollywood couple: Jesby. Tobee. J-To. I’m my own person, you know.’’
I watched her, hoping she’d raise her head so I could read her expression. That’s when I noticed Zeke’s ears prick forward. Seconds later, I heard the sound, too. Something loud crashed toward us through the woods. Zeke startled, sidestepping quickly away from the noise. Jesse, clutching the saddle’s horn like a life preserver, shrieked in fear.
“Stay calm,’’ I said quietly. “Just hold on to Zeke’s reins and run your hand along his neck. He just hears something, is all. You reassure him. You’re both okay.’’
Jesse did as I told her, and the horse was fine. But the noise kept coming our way. We both peered into the trees. “What is it, Mace? Are there grizzly bears here?’’
A moment later, Toby stumbled onto the sandy path ahead of us. Blood covered his face. His clothes were dirty and torn. Silently, he reached a hand in our direction, and then collapsed in a heap on the ground.
Toby struggled to stand. He staggered, and fell again.
I swung down from my saddle. Jesse leapt straight off Zeke, leaving the horse’s reins hanging. She’d barely hit the ground before she started running to Toby. I grabbed the reins of both horses and followed.
Toby had managed to hoist himself to a sitting position. He watched, looking dazed, as we approached. He was filthy. Leaves clung to his hair, normally so flawless. Scratches crisscrossed his face. Dirt streaked the back of his torn shirt. Both knees of his jeans were stained.
“Someone tried to run me down in the parking lot.’’ He put a hand to his head, and it came away red with blood. “I think I’m hurt.’’
Jesse performed a quick check, peering into his hair to see the source of the oozing blood. She looked up at me. “Scalp wound …”
“It hurts, Jess …”
“… bloody, but not deep.’’
She studied his pupils, checking for brain injury or shock. Lifting the torn shirt gently off his body, she surveyed his bare chest and back for evidence of other wounds. Toby’s voice was weak, but he kept talking:
“I was running away, but I tripped and fell. When I felt the asphalt, I kept rolling. I came to a stop in a muddy ditch.’’ He gingerly fingered his bloodied hair. “I think I smacked my head on a rock.’’
“So the car didn’t hit you?’’ she asked.
He shook his head, wincing in pain.
“Can you stand up?’’ I asked him. “We’ll get you up on one of the horses and take you to the medical trailer.’’
Still holding both sets of reins in one hand, I extended the other to Toby. Jesse did the same. Together, we pulled him to his feet.
“Can you walk?’’ she asked.
He tested his weight on one leg, and then the other. He grimaced. “I must have hurt the same knee that got smacked at the bar.’’
She leaned down to feel for swelling. “How bad’s the pain, scale of one to five?”
“Two, maybe,’’ he said.
“You’ll probably live.’’ Jesse grinned at him. “But I think we should get you to the medic, just to be safe.’’
“I don’t want to live if I can’t have you.’’
Her forehead wrinkled. “Very funny, Toby. What film is that line from?’’
“It’s not from a movie. I mean it. You realize what’s important when you’re hiding in a ditch, wondering if somebody’s going to make a U-turn and come back to try and kill you.’’ He stroked her cheek. “I love you, Jess. I want us to be a couple, for real.’’
Jesse cut her eyes toward me. I pretended to be studying the ground.
“No response?’’ Toby searched her face, looking for an answer he didn’t seem to find.
It was so quiet, I could hear the horses swishing their tails. Still, he stared at her. I coughed quietly, and then cleared my throat. I wanted to ask another question. “Did you see what kind of car it was?’’
He couldn’t tear his eyes from Jesse, even though she gazed indifferently into the trees.
“The car?’’ I prodded.
Finally, he looked at me. “It was white, or at least light in color.’’ His voice was thick with hurt. I was pretty sure it wasn’t from the physical injuries. “I’m not sure what kind. It might even have been a truck, or a van. It happened so fast.’’
“What about the driver?’’
“Big hat. Sun was glinting off the windshield. I couldn’t tell who was behind the wheel. Sorry.’’
So the vehicle was possibly white, like half the movie company’s rental fleet. And the driver might have been a man; or maybe a woman. He, or possibly she, was young … or maybe old. Carlos was going to love getting this report.
We were about to help Toby onto my horse to take him to the medical trailer when we heard another crash in the brush. It was followed by a string of curses. Barbara emerged, yanking spider webs from her face.
“There you are, Toby!’’ Her tone was scolding, until she seemed to register that her star client was bruised and bloodied and leaning on Jesse.
“Ohmigod, what happened?’’ She rushed to push Jesse out of the way.
“I’ve got him, Barbara,’’ Jesse said. “He had an accident. It doesn’t look serious.’’
“An accident?’’ She cupped Toby’s face, looking into his eyes. She touched the blood staining his brow. “My poor baby!’’
He tried to jerk his head away. “Somebody tried to run over me in the parking lot. Don’t worry. I survived. Your fifteen percent is safe.’’
Barbara dropped her hand from his face like she’d touched a hot stove. She looked stunned, crushed by his cruel words. Then again, she had been an actress way back when.
“You didn’t happen to see anything, did you?’’ I asked her.
She narrowed her eyes. “What’s that supposed to mean?’’
I shrugged. “Nothing. Just that Toby didn’t see who almost hit him. Maybe you noticed somebody burning rubber out of the parking lot.’’
“I was nowhere near there. I was in Toby’s trailer, waiting for him, until one of the production assistants told me Toby was headed into town. I was on my way to check to see if his car was gone, when I got lost trying to take the shortcut to the parking lot.’’