A Snow Covered Nightmare: Refuge Series Book Two by Debbie Zello (24)

Chapter Twenty-Four

“I figured when you didn’t come back that you made your presence known, so to speak,” Pete said. “She let you stay overnight? Does that mean all is forgiven?”

“Not exactly. It’s more like all is okay for now and we’ll see about forgiven later.”

“That’s good. It’s better than fuck you and I hope you die!”

“Agreed, it’s better than that. She let me hold her all night. It’s the best night sleep I’ve had since she left. She is in the shower now. I’m stopping by to pick up my stuff. She invited me to stay with her.”

“I guess that tells me just about where I stand,” Pete said joking.

“I know, staying with you and sleeping on the couch verses staying with Briah and sleeping in her bed. It’s a hard and difficult decision. I’ll make the sacrifice and stay with her,” Aiden said with a snort.

“I don’t blame you one bit! We’re going out, so I’ll leave the key at the lodge with your name. We have two so don’t worry about us. Stop by whenever you want.”

“Thanks Pete. I really mean thanks. If you hadn’t seen her, none of this would be happening. I owe you everything,” Aiden said sincerely.

“That’s what it means to have your back, bro. Good times and bad, I’m here for you. I don’t know what you have planned for Christmas, but if you want, you’re welcome to come here and spend it with us.”

“Thanks. I’ll ask Briah when she gets out of the shower and let you know.”

“Okay, talk later. I’m happy for you, Aiden, really happy!”

“Thanks. Have fun with your family. Bye.” Aiden hung up just as Briah, wrapped in a towel, came out of the bathroom. “Not that I could ever forget just how lovely you are, but, seeing you now reminds me of just how stunning you are.”

“Thank you. Could I have some privacy so I can get dressed for work?”

“I’ve seen you naked.”

“Yes you have, many, many times. But this is different from those times, Aiden,” she said seriously. He gave her a small bitter smile.

“Are we going to be friends or lovers or nothing, Briah? I know what has happened was a crushing blow to both of us. I know that you will need some time to work things out. I need to know if we are a possibility.

“I love you so much I’m going to leave Denver to move here. I’m going to look for work today. I want you to make me the happiest man on the planet and marry me. Is that what you want?” He watched her processing all that he had said. It was as bad as trying to read a jury when he was testifying. Her weight shifted on her feet.

“I know why you did what you did. What I don’t understand is why you didn’t come in that room and explain it all to me. Why you didn’t tell me you couldn’t protect me well enough. Tell me to go. That you would join me as soon as you could. Trust me with the same information you had.”

“I didn’t think of that. I had a few minutes to make a decision. You were almost killed. It was a terrifying and unique situation with few immediate options. I chose the wrong one.”

“Yes, you did,” she said looking down. Aiden stood still, wanting to go to her and hold her. That’s all he had wanted to do for as long as he’d known her. She looked up straight into his eyes and said softly, “If I was a perfect person I could expect you to be perfect. I’m not perfect. I make mistakes every day. If it had been your life in danger, I would have done what the experts suggested I do.

“I love you, Aiden. I always will. I know that because I haven’t stopped loving you. I didn’t sleep with Stu, not because I didn’t want to, but because I still loved you.” Aiden opened his arms and Briah walked into them. He closed his eyes in thanks to the heavens.

“I love you, Briah. Everything I have ever wanted is in my arms right now,” he said as he bent his head and kissed her. Their kiss deepened as Briah moaned. Kissing Aiden had always been arousing for her. Aiden backed away. “If I continue to kiss you, I won’t be able to stop. Do you want to call out of work?” he asked smiling.

“I can’t call out this week or next. This is our busiest time, with most people off for the holidays. I can take a few days after New Year’s weekend. And you should get use to calling me Cherie.”

“Okay, I understand that. It won’t be easy, but I’ll try. Pete wanted to know if we wanted to have Christmas dinner with them.”

“I have to work most of the day. Why don’t you go and I’ll join you when I get off.”

“That works. You’d better get dressed and go, before I don’t let you,” he said giving her a quick kiss.

Briah drove to work but it felt closer to flying. Yesterday morning was an already distant memory. Last night was a gift and today, the beginning of her future. Aiden holding her last night was in many ways her rebirth.

She got to the parking lot, parked and dashed into the building that held the Mountain Operations Center. She checked all of the schedules for the next few days. That would get her through Christmas Day. Then she went to the gift shop to check on the stock for that day. Finally, she went to the rental shop to see about the overnight repairs she had left to be completed.

Once everything was verified, she grabbed her equipment and headed towards the lifts. It was very cold and windy at the base of the mountain. She looked up in the early morning snowfall and could not make out the summit. There would be several injuries today, she thought.

Visitors came here from many different states. They didn’t know the mountain or the trails. With poor visibility, they’d miss a trail or a turn and end up hurt. They were as reckless as drivers that were not familiar with winter driving and yet drove anyway. The mountain wouldn’t forgive stupidity. “Phil, will you please call Copley and let them know the conditions here. I want them prepared for traffic.”

“Sure enough, Cherie. What about Fire Rescue?” he asked.

“Yes, them too, please. Let Tom know we are going to need him today. Every spare pair of hands. It looks nasty up there,” she said pointing.

“I’ve been watching since I got here. The mountain is mad. The wind isn’t happy and the snow queen’s weeping,” he said with a wink.

“Wow, you got all the characters. Let’s hope the visitors aren’t crazy!” she said sitting on the lift. The ride to the top was rough with the wind pushing the lift around. Cherie felt they might have to close it down if it got much stronger. It wasn’t safe to run in high winds. She was going to have to check with Tom as soon as she got back.

Her mountain was mad. For the first time in her life, she wished she had poles with her to help balance against the wind. For a good three to four hundred feet at the top you couldn’t see but a few feet in front of you. Briah knew the trails so well she could have skied them with her eyes closed. She knew the visitors couldn’t even with radar.

As soon as she was out of the mist, she stopped to call on her radio. “Phil.”

“Yeah, Cherie.”

“What did Tom say?”

“He’s coming up.”

“It’s bad, really bad. I think we need to close the top. Only go up to Midway Lodge,” she yelled into the mic as the wind made regular speaking impossible.

Briah heard a muffled crack that seemed to come from down the mountain. The tree next to her splintered just as she was tackled to the cold snow. The two bodies tumbled forward for several feet in a jumbled mess before stopping. Her skis flew past her sliding to a stop near a crop of pine trees to her left. As soon as she stopped, she looked at who it was that took her off her feet. “What the hell, Tom?” she screamed. “You could have killed me!” She sat up and began dusting the snow from her face.

“I was trying to save your life!” Tom screamed back.

“What are you talking about?”

“I heard a shot and then the tree next to you splintered. Fucking hunters! Some asshole probably thought you were a deer and took a shot. In the snow and mist, thank God they missed you.”

“That’s what that noise was? A bullet? Who would do that?”

“It doesn’t happen a lot, but unfortunately it does happen. One idiot shot a cow thinking it was a really fat deer,” he said, standing up and helping her to her feet. Briah continued to dust herself off so the snow wouldn’t melt and freeze making her wet and cold.

“I didn’t know it was hunting season,” Briah said.

“Muzzleloader just ended but some people think they’re Daniel Boon and just hunt when they want. It’s not illegal until you get caught,” Tom said explaining their logic.

“They would have had a big surprise when they came to get me. I wouldn’t feed them for very long,” she said laughing.

“It’s not fucking funny, Cherie! You could have been killed. I’m calling to report this as soon as I get down,” Tom said walking down towards their jumble of skis resting against the low branches of the pine trees.

He picked hers up and placed them in front of her so she could step into the bindings. Briah tapped off the snow that had collected under her boot and snapped on the skis. She watched as Tom mirrored her and then together they skied the rest of the way back to the lift area.

Tom removed his skis and walked over to the platform. He was still angry when he said, “Phil, did you hear that shot?”

“Yeah, I did. I thought it was close but I couldn’t see anything strange. You know how sound reverberates around the mountains, so it’s difficult to know exactly where it originates,” he said, helping Tom with his equipment.

“I’m calling it in. The shot shattered a tree a few feet away from Cherie. Some asshole nearly killed her,” Tom said taking out his phone to make the call.

“Holy fuck! Those idiots won’t learn they can’t shoot a gun until they kill someone,” Phil said angrily. He turned to Briah. “Are you all right?”

“I’m fine, thanks. It didn’t hit me. Thank God, they only shot once and then Tom tackled me to the ground. I’m sure they weren’t actually aiming at me. It was just a fluke,” Briah said leaning her skis up against the rail.

As the three coworkers discussed the event, none of them noticed the man parked in the car seething just a few feet away from where they stood. Roland had driven across the street and up the hill, to the condo complex built behind the lodge. There, nestled in the cover of the forest, he found the perfect spot with a view of the mountain.

Taking his Accuracy International L115A3 sniper rifle from his trunk, he set it on the hood of his car. He loaded it with an 8.59 mm bullet and took aim. Adjusting his breathing with his heartbeat, he scoped his target and then squeezed the trigger.

Roland watched through the scope as Briah skied just slightly to the right as the bullet hit the tree next to her head. He closed his eyes briefly, and quickly put the rifle back in its compartment in the trunk. He looked around for any unwanted observers, realized he was still completely alone, and then nonchalantly got back in his car.

Once they had closed the very top of the mountain for safety’s sake, Tom and Briah spoke to the police and game warden. Both of the enforcement divisions looked around the surrounding hills for any evidence of hunters in the area, but finding nothing after a few hours, they left.

Briah spent the rest of her day combing the trails for injured skiers. They opened the upper part of the mountain for skiing in the early afternoon, much to the delight of the vacationers.

The ambulance was only called four times, which was actually a good day, considering the number of people on the trails. By the time Briah had finished everything and left for the day, she had forgotten the whole incident on the mountain, earlier. She walked to her car, passing the man still sitting in his. Briah didn’t notice his eyes tracking her to her car, nor him following her home again.