Begging for a Second Chance (Sienna Sloan and Jarred Sterling) novel Chapter 105

Her stamina drained rapidly during the endless search, her vision spotting with black.

Sienna had to stop and catch her breath every few steps, her knee throbbing so badly that a sheen of cold sweat coated her forehead.

But she didn't dare stop. Only one thought repeated in her mind: He had fallen with her. He had shielded her during the drop. He couldn't be dead.

She had no idea how long she'd been searching. She only knew the sun was blinding and the forest seemed impossibly vast.

She had called out so many times, yet silence was her only answer.

Leaning against a tree trunk, she gasped for air as pure terror gripped her heart.

What if his fall had been worse than hers? What if he was trapped somewhere? What if...

Sienna refused to let her thoughts go there.

She shook her head, trying to banish the dark scenarios. Just as she was about to resume her search, the sound of rapid footsteps approached from a short distance away.

"Dr. Sloan!"

Sienna looked up to see a man running toward her through the trees. It was Caleb.

Caleb closed the distance in a few strides. Seeing her battered, bloodied state, his face drained of color. "Dr. Sloan! What happened to you? How did you get so hurt?"

He hurriedly rushed to support her, looking her up and down. "Where are you injured? Is it serious?"

"I'm fine, I can manage," Sienna gripped his arm tightly, her voice trembling with urgency.

"Hurry, help me find Jarred. He fell down here with me. I was knocked out, and when I woke up, he was gone. You have to help me search. He might be badly hurt, he might..."

She rambled incoherently about the terrifying fall off the cliff, her eyes brimming with frantic anxiety.

But Caleb frowned in total confusion.

So Jarred showing up at that exact location last night hadn't been a coincidence. He had been there acting as Celeste's personal bodyguard.

"Are you saying... he was with Dr. Carlyle the entire night?" Sienna's voice was so soft she could barely hear herself.

Caleb nodded. "Yeah. Captain Sterling disappeared for a while last night, probably scouting for more survivors.

But Dr. Carlyle was frantic. Even after the casualties were taken down, she refused to leave without him. She forced everyone to help her look.

Two villagers helped her search for him all night, and she ended up slipping down a ridge and breaking her leg."

He sighed again. "Captain Sterling finally found her this morning and carried her down the mountain. The sun was already up by then."

Sienna said nothing.

Images from last night flashed relentlessly through her mind.