Chapter 34.1

Lisa held on tightly to the girl, breathing her in for a moment. She was just glad to have her in her arms again, to be here for her. 'How are you going?'

'Better, now you're here.' Jessie sighed in relief, looking up at her. 'Thank you for coming back. '

'There was no way I was staying over in France with all this happening. Family is more important.'

Family. 'Have you heard anything?'

'Lou rang when I landed, there's been no change with Jack.' She looked down at her, frowning as she saw the bandages on the girls hands as Jessie stepped back. 'Jessie-'

'I couldn't tell you over the phone. Please don't be mad at me.'

'I'm not mad honey.' She stroked the girls cheek gently. 'What happened?'

Jessie's lip quivered as she tried to keep herself together, placing her arm back in its sling. 'Let's go sit down.'

'Alright.' She hung her coat up and followed the girl into the living room, taking a seat beside her. ' You okay?'

'No. No I'm not.'

'Honey-'

'Just hold me Lisa, please.'

'Jessie-' She wrapped her arms around her as the girl started to sob. 'Honey what is it?'

'I was in the fire.' Jessie whimpered, her voice a mear whisper as she lent her head down on the woman's shoulder. 'After I got off the call to you I rang the fire brigade and ran out to the barn. I couldn't find Jack, he wasn't in the house and he wasn't outside. I waited and waited for him to come out of the barn but he didn't come out.'

'Oh sweetheart.' Lisa stroked the girls hair gently, unable to imagine what the poor girl had gone through.

She gulped, her eyes filled with tears. 'I ran in. I ran into that barn. I knew he was in there, I couldn't leave him there.'

Suddenly she saw a form lying on the ground and she crawled forward, tossing a burning piece of timber out of the way as she hurried to him. 'Jack! Oh god! Jack!' He wasn't moving, lying facedown on the concrete in front of a stall door. The sounds of the horses were forgotten as she came up beside him, trying to figure out what to do. The heat, the flames, the smoke- Tears poured down her face. Hold yourself together girl! She screamed inwardly to herself, frantically lifting a beam that had fallen on Jack off him, the pain in her shoulder and the burning in her hands making her cry out. You have got to get him out of here! The thought ran through her mind with a determined urgency, forcing herself to push her pain to the back of her mind. Get him out of here!

Jessie paused, shaking with emotion from her flashback. 'He was unconscious when I found him, I carried him out of the barn on my back on my hands and knees. I was so worried I wouldn't find him alive, it was horrible Lisa. The smoke, the flames. The sounds of the horses.' The girl shuddered. 'Everything blended together in a never ending nightmare.'

Jessie saved Jack's life. She stared down at the girl in dumb amazement, completely and utterly speechless. What could she say?

'I went back for the horses, Pegasus was the last one I got out. I wouldn't have made it out if it wasn't for that guy. We only just got out before the roof collapsed.'

'Oh Jess.' No wonder the girl was an absolute mess. 'Where was the fire brigade?'

'They didn't show up till after I got Jack and the horses out. If I had waited-' She sniffled. 'They'd have all died. I felt so helpless sitting with Jack waiting for them to show up, I was trying to get him to wake up. I was scared he was going to die and there was nothing I could do. It's my fault he's hurt, he was trying to get Warrior out of the barn and he did something to him. It was my horse that injured him and now-'

'Ssssh honey, it's okay. It's not your fault. It's not your fault.' Lisa stroked the girl's hair gently. It was no surprise she was upset like this if she thought Jack's condition was her fault. That kind of guilt was crushing to a person and she was just a child. 'It's not your fault Jack is hurt, it's no one's fault. Sometimes, things like that happen. You're not to blame.'

'But if I had put Warrior out in the pasture like I was going to-'

'Honey, you can't blame yourself. It was an accident, there was no way it was your fault. Jack is going to be okay.'

'What if he isn't?'

'You can't think like that sweetheart. Jack will be alright.'

'I've lost too much already, I don't want to lose him too.' She whispered, her voice breaking. 'This was what I was afraid of. Of opening my heart again to someone and then losing them.'

'I know honey, I know.' She wished she could ease the girls pain, to take away the pain of her past. She wished somehow she could spare her going through this but she knew that what the girl had gone through the last few days was something only she could work through. All she could do was be there for her. She just sat there, holding her tightly as the girl cried and let her pent up emotions out. 'Feel a little better now?'

Jessie nodded as she pulled away, wiping her cheeks dry. 'Can you take me to see him? I need to see him.'

'Sure sweetheart but you need to look after yourself first.' She wiped away a tear the girl had missed. 'Jack would want you to take care of yourself first, wouldn't he? The girl nodded sadly and she smiled sympathetically at her. Poor girl. She motioned down at her hands. 'May I?'

'Okay.' The girl sniffed, letting her unwrap her hands. She looked away, winching as she felt her take the dressings off. 'They're a bit sore.'

'Understandably honey.' Lisa exclaimed, looking at the burns. 'Come on, let's go find something to put on them.'

Lisa looked down at the girl as she slept on the couch a little while later. She could see the girl was tired, exhausted physically and mentally so she had convinced the girl to get some rest and after that she would take her to see Jack. You poor girl. She placed a blanket gently on her to keep her warm then stood up and walked into the kitchen. Quietly she took a seat at the table, pulling her phone from her pocket. The picture of Jack and Jessie came onto the screen and she paused for a moment to look at it then dialed Lou's number.

'Hello?'

'Hi Lou, it's Lisa.' She spoke softly so she didn't disturb the child sleeping in the room across from her. 'I'm here at Heartland with Jessie. She wants to come see Jack. Is it okay if I bring her in?'

'I don't know-' Her voice trailed off as Amy looked up at her, mouthing to her that Lisa wanted to bring Jessie in. Amy glanced over at Jack then turned back to her, asking her if she thought Jessie could cope with seeing him the way he was. 'How is she going Lisa? Do you think she'll be able to cope coming in?'

'I think her not seeing him will be worse for her in the long run to be honest Lou. She's really having a hard time with everything that's happened, if she doesn't see him-' She sighed. 'I don't really know what to do. Jessie is an absolute mess, I don't know what the right thing to do is.'

'Yeah.' Lou sat back down, looking at Jack. 'That's understandable. She thinks the world of Jack. I tried talking to her the other day but she just refused to talk about what happened the night of the barn fire.'

'She spoke to me about it.' She glanced back into the living room, checking to make sure that Jessie was still asleep. 'Lou, there's a lot that happened that night I'm guessing you don't know about and that's what she's dealing with at the moment. She's going through a lot, I don't know how to help her.'

'Just being there with her will be helping her, you know how attached she is to you.'

'I know, I just wish there was more I could do for her.' Lisa sighed heavily. 'Did she get checked out by a doctor for her burns?'

'Burns?'

'Yes, she burnt her hands in the fire. Didn't you know?'

'No, no.' She frowned. 'I didn't. How bad are they?'

'They don't look too great, I'll get Barbra to check her over.' She rubbed her forehead, guessing that the girl hadn't told anyone what had happened or that she had been hurt. 'I think she'll be alright but I'll still get her looked over.'

'How did she get burnt though? I don't understand-'

'She didn't tell you?'

'She hasn't told me anything. I would have known about her hands if she did, wouldn't I?' Lou snapped slightly then sighed. 'I'm sorry Lisa, I've just got a lot to deal with.'

'We all do.' She looked towards the living room again, a silent war going on in her mind about whether or not to tell her what Jessie had revealed. She needed to know what happened. 'Tell me what you know about what happened and I'll fill you in on the rest.'

'As far as I know, Jessie called the fire brigade, Jack got the horses out and somehow he had a fall. That's what I was told by the fire captain from what he could gather about the situation. What did Jessie say?'

She closed her eyes, trying to think of the best way to explain what had happened in the simplest terms. 'The first part is correct but it wasn't Jack who got the horses out.'

'I'm not following-'

'Jessie got the horses out of the barn Lou, Jack was hurt before he could get them out. He tried to get Warrior out first and he must have been kicked by him because when Jessie went in there he was unconscious. Jessie saved his life.'

'Oh my god.' Her hand went to her mouth in shock, Amy looking up at her with a questioning expression on her face. 'I had no idea.'

'Neither did I, until she told me this morning.'

'She burnt herself saving Grandpa. I didn't know.'

'She thinks it's her fault that he's hurt too, since it was her horse that injured him.'

Lou sighed. 'It's not her fault. It was an accident.'

'That's what I tried to tell her but she's still blaming herself.'

'Poor girl. I had no idea that's what happened. Jack didn't remember the accident at all and she didn't say anything-' She thought for a moment, thinking of the girl's behaviour the last couple of days. It made sense now. Even though she had a lot on her mind with the insurance problem and everything happening she knew Jessie needed to come in. 'Bring her in Lisa but try and prepare her so she doesn't get a huge shock.'

'I'll do my best.' She glanced up at the clock. 'I've just managed to get her to get some sleep so I'll let her rest for a couple hours then I'll bring her in. Is that okay?'

'That's fine if you want to do that.'

Lisa nodded, glad that was sorted. 'How is he?'

'No change.'

'Okay.' Those two words were all she needed to know. 'I'll see you guys soon.'

'Alright. Bye Lisa.'

'Bye.' She ended the call, placing the phone down on the table with a sigh. She could hear in Lou's voice speaking with her how much of a toll this was having on her and wished she hadn't had to have dropped the added bombshell of the truth on top of her. Running her fingers through her hair she got up, quietly walking back into the living room to watch over the sleeping girl.

Sitting down in a chair across from her, she watched the girl sleeping peacefully, a small smile coming across her face. Jessie was in a deep sleep, for that she was thankful. The girl had been through a lot, she could guess she hadn't gotten much rest the last couple of days. Grabbing one of the magazines off the coffee table she began to absentmindedly flick through it to pass the time...

'Hi there Lisa.'

'Hi.' She replied to Jack as she got out of her car, walking up to the house.

'You come by to take a look at your fancy new jumping course?'

'Among other things.' The bruise under his eye and his split lip didn't go unnoticed. 'Well, what has happened to you?' She asked with a mischievous smile, stopping beside him.

'Well, I guess you have to watch the movie.'

Lisa laughed knowing he wasn't going to say anymore then that. 'I see.'

'That's mighty impressive.' He nodded towards the jumping course in the new arena. 'It's got all the bells and whistles.'

'Oh Jack. It's just jumps. I'm not feeding your family and paying your mortgage. It's just a bunch of jumps so our kids can do better at horse shows, right?'

'Your a generous woman, nonetheless.'

'Well, generous to a fault, I understand, if you ask my nephew. Is he around?'

'In the barn most likely.'

'Ok.' She sighed, then turned back to him. 'I'll see you later.'

'You know-' He started as she walked to the gate. 'Lou is, uh, trying her hand at pancakes. I can't guarantee the results, but you'd sure be welcome to join us.'

'Alright, thank you. That sounds lovely.'

Something startled Lisa from her dream and she glanced around to see what it was, her heart racing. Cougar walked over and she sighed in relief. 'Oh, it's only you.' She whispered as the cat rubbed up against her, purring loudly and she placed her hand on her back, giving into her request for some attention. 'Hey girl.'

She glanced up at the clock then over at Jessie, the girl still sleeping peacefully. She rubbed her eyes, sitting back in her chair as the cat left and laid down on her bed. She didn't even remember going to sleep. She yawned softly, placing the magazine still open on her lap down on the coffee table. Obviously she had needed a nap herself.

Her eyes fell on a picture of Jack and Paint across the room, her thoughts turning back to the cowboy. It had shaken her, listening to Jessie tell her of what had happened. Just when she thought that things were starting to look up for them, her with her budding relationship with Jack that had blossomed since their kiss at the cattle drive and Jessie learning how to integrate into her new life, this had come along and happened. It was just so unfair. Jessie had been making such good progress, putting her old life behind her and moving forward and now that had been shattered by Jack's accident. She could understand somewhat what the girl was going through, could understand she was worried about losing Jack. She was herself too, even if she didn't admit it to her.

She looked at the clock again, wondering when the girl would wake up. She wasn't going to disturb her, if she had been asleep this long already she most definitely needed it. In the silence and loneliness of the empty house her only company was her thoughts while Jessie slept. Jack's injury wasn't something to be taken lightly, he was in a coma for heaven's sake. She couldn't sugarcoat the severity of it in her mind, she knew exactly what it could mean. The chances of him recovering fully and getting back to his usual self at his age weren't that great. And then there was the alternative. The fact that he mightn't get better at all.

'Lisa.'

She looked up, hearing the girls voice and saw she was awake. 'Hey honey. Did you have a good sleep?'

'Yeah, it was okay.' Jessie answered sadly, sitting up and placing the blanket aside. 'I had a dream about our weekend at the fishing cabin. What if we don't get the chance to do that again?'

'Hey, it's alright honey.' She got up quickly, going over to the girl as she looked like she was about to start crying again. 'We'll have plenty of chances to do that when Jack gets better.'

'And what if he doesn't?'

'He will.' She replied strongly, not only to reassure the girl but herself too. 'You just have to have faith and believe. Jack needs you to be strong now honey, he needs both of us to be strong.' She tucked a stray lock of hair behind the girl's ear. 'He's going to be okay. He'll get through this.'

The girl nodded after a moment, her gaze still averated to the floor. 'Can we go see him now?'

'Sure sweetheart but maybe you should go get ready first. Go change your clothes and brush your hair then we'll go in. You don't want to look like a scarecrow do you?'

'No.' She giggled, seeing her reflection in the coffee table. 'Why do they call it beauty sleep when you wake up looking like this?'

'I don't know.' Lisa chuckled, glad to see a little smile on the girl's face. 'Go on, the quicker you change, the quicker we can go see Jack.'