Read Online Sweet Boundless by Kristen Heitzmann - Free Book Online

of the pines and the grasses along the shore.
    The lake turned a brilliant blue and Quillan watched it with satisfaction as they passed by, far enough away to catch the reflection of the peaks in its expanse and take in the entire vista. He noted Carina’s gaze, riveted. Did she remember his teaching her to shoot on the shores of that lake? Of course she did. It was vivid for him.
    “It looks like we’ll have clear skies after all.” It surprised him that he was the one to break the silence.
    “I wasn’t worried.”
    “You don’t know enough to be.” He didn’t say it to provoke her. It was the simple truth. Until you’ve experienced the alpine weather, you couldn’t imagine its deadliness. Even in early September.
    They were climbing toward the summit, and he kept the team at an even pace. Lung fever had claimed many a horse pushed too hard for the altitude. He never expected more of his team than he knew they could manage. Now with a very light load, they could hold this pace and blow once they reached the top. Coming back with a full bed, they’d have to let them rest every quarter mile near the summit.
    They continued to climb, the road hitching back and forth as the grade grew steeper and more treacherous. A keen breeze stung his face and the air sparkled suddenly with a snow shower under the blue, sunlit sky.
    Beside him, Carina’s breath caught, and she released it with an exultant sigh. “It’s beautiful. Com’ è bello. Stupendo .” Her voice was a breathless rush.
    Quillan turned. He hadn’t heard her language for some time. He liked how it sounded when she wasn’t using it to abuse him.
    “How can it snow with no clouds in the sky?” She stared upward with wonder.
    “At this altitude the moisture freezes without necessarily accumulating into clouds.”
    “It doesn’t look real. I think it’s stardust.” She pulled her hands from her pockets and raised open palms to the glittering flakes.
    Quillan smiled, then rubbed Sam’s ear when he wiggled uncertainly. “Don’t mind her, Sam. She gets some wild notions.”
    Carina closed her eyes, ignoring him. Quillan smiled at that, too. Two months ago she would have thrown an insult in return. Now she tried to appear as though she neither heard nor cared. She opened her mouth and held her tongue to the flakes.
    He caught his own tongue between his side teeth to keep from laughing. “Don’t breathe it in, Carina. It’s too sharp to take directly into your lungs that way. You’ll risk pneumonia.”
    She closed her mouth and eyed him. “I want to stop at the top.”
    “We’ll stop. The horses need a blow.”
    “Blow?”
    “Rest. Catch their breath.”
    They climbed in silence as the sparkling shower thickened without threat. Quillan navigated the road to the highest point, then reined in the horses. Carina jumped down, and he watched her stride to the edge of the road, spread her arms wide, and holler, “Grazie, Signore!”
    The air was biting as she hollered, then drew yet more air into her throat to holler again. She believed Quillan that it was unhealthy, but she couldn’t contain what she felt. “Grazie, Dio!” This beauty, this stupendous, glorious beauty. How could she not thank God for it?
    She dropped her arms and looked down from the summit of the pass. Far below, the river rushed in a narrow, rocky bed. She grasped her hands below her chin and murmured her thanks again. Gesù had removed the fear of heights when she surrendered her soul to His keeping and forgave Divina, who had, wittingly or no, given her the fear. God had healed her, and she basked in the scene spread beneath her—something she would not have dared look at four months ago. She felt Quillan at her side.
    His touch was cautious on her elbow. “Are you okay?”
    She nodded. “Sì.”
    “I thought you had a problem with heights.”
    “I did.” She stooped and pried a stone loose. Cupping it in her palm, she threw it out over the edge and watched it soar