Chapter 2 #2
“I understand. Then let’s go.” He signed his bill as well and stood, motioned for her to go before him, then followed her out of the lodge. “I’m still wondering about the landlines,” he said. “It seems odd to me that they’re not working. At least some of them.”
“The workers didn’t seem too surprised.”
“Maybe they’re not supposed to show concern to the visitors.”
“Could be.”
Resort workers and guest volunteers were doing their best to clear the snow from around the buildings.
Most of the snow and ice had ended up at the entrance.
And while it wasn’t fun to be trapped, there were definitely worse places to be stuck.
She was just concerned about those who needed medical care.
“Hey there, Maya, how are you this morning?”
She turned, her mind searching for a name. Bill. Bob. Ben. Single father of two boys. One of whom she’d treated for an earache shortly after the avalanche. The youngest. Six-year-old Mitch. “Ben, hi again.” She introduced Ben and Gideon, and the two men shook hands. “How’s Mitch doing?”
“Much better, thanks. We slept last night at least.”
“Good news. I’m happy for you.”
“Trust me, we are too.” He shuffled his feet and shot a short glance at Gideon, who cleared his throat.
“I’m just going to . . . uh . . . get a coffee to go,” Gideon said. “Catch up with you in a minute?”
“Of course.”
Gideon walked away and Maya had a sinking feeling in her stomach. She forced another smile. “Well, don’t let me keep you. I’m headed back to my cabin to get some rest.”
“Right. Right. I was still hoping to convince you to let me buy you dinner sometime while my mom watches the boys.”
“That’s really kind of you, Ben, but like I told you yesterday, I’m not here for any type of . . . um . . . romantic opportunities.”
He raised a brow and looked in the direction Gideon had gone. “I see.”
“No, you really don’t.” Sometimes a woman just had to be a little blunt. “Gideon and I go way back to our teen years. He’s a friend.”
“Sure. Well, thanks again. I’ll be around if you change your mind.”
He left, and Gideon reappeared as though he could read her wishful thoughts. “Everything okay?”
“Fine. Yeah. I think he’s just a little lonely.” Gideon snorted and she frowned at him. “What?”
“The guy is not lonely, Maya. He’s like every other man on the planet who knows an attractive woman when he sees one. Trust me.” He paused. “And even if he is lonely, that last statement still holds true.”
Had he just said she was attractive in a roundabout way? Yes. He definitely had. She tried to ignore the admiring look in his eyes and the heat climbing into her neck. “Well, thanks. I think. Truly, though, the only thing I’m interested in right now is some sleep.”
“Then come on. Let’s make that happen.”
Not all the cabins were within walking distance of the lodge, and visitors had to use the shuttles provided. But hers was. And while it was close in proximity, the ingenious landscaping with trees surrounding it made it feel as if she were the only person on the planet—or at least at the resort.
The tree-lined path led straight to her cabin, and she walked up the three steps to the front door before she turned to Gideon. “It was good to see you again, Gideon.”
“You too. So this is yours.” He flushed. “Obviously.”
“Yes. Why?”
He smiled. “I’m three cabins up the hill.”
“Nice.” She glanced in the direction of the dark area on the other side of the avalanche slide. “I almost feel guilty that I get to go into this nice warm cabin. I hope no one was over there when all of this happened. If so, they could be in trouble.”
“So far, no one’s been reported missing, but if they’re like us, here alone, who’s going to report them?” He frowned and rubbed a hand over his five-o’clock-shadowed chin. “You think Vance is okay?”
“I think he’s okay physically,” she said. “I’m sure he’s embarrassed by the episode, angry that it happened in the first place, but definitely mortified we saw it. The same as you or I would be if it happened to us.”
He nodded. “Yeah, true. But I think I’m going to go by his cabin and check on him.”
“How do you know which one is his?”
“I’m sure they have a list at the lodge. And if they won’t tell me his location, I’ll ask them to send a message with one of the teens.”
“Let me know if there’s anything I can do to help.”
“Will do. See you at dinner?”
“I’ll be there.”
He lingered a moment like he wanted to say something else, then gave her a small salute, turned on his heel in perfect military fashion, and started back down the hill toward the lodge.
Maya swiped her key card, pushed the door open, and gasped.
“Gideon!”
At Maya’s shout, Gideon stopped in his tracks and turned to hurry back to her side. “What is it?”
She pointed, face pale, jaw set. “Someone broke into my cabin.”
He peered around her and smothered his own gasp.
“Whoa.” The place had been turned upside down.
The half bath just inside the entrance looked untouched, but the French doors leading to the small balcony straight ahead were blocked by the overturned dining chairs.
The square table lay on its side and the sofa cushions had been tossed to the floor.
The layout was like his, which meant the bedroom was to the right just past the fireplace with the en suite bath next to that.
“The door was locked,” she said, “and it didn’t look tampered with.”
“Let me take a look.” He stepped past her.
“I’ll report this to security.” She snagged her phone and froze.
Then rolled her eyes. “Oh, wait. I can’t call to report this to security because a stupid avalanche took out the cell tower.
You’d think there would be more than one.
” She caught his concerned gaze and snapped her lips shut.
Then pulled in a deep, calming breath. “You don’t have to look at me that way.
I’m okay, just . . . unnerved. I’ll have to walk back down to the lodge. ”
“I’ll go with you, but why don’t we take a look around, see if you notice anything missing.”
“Fine. I don’t suppose it matters if we touch anything. It’s not like a crime scene unit can get in here even if we could call one.” She paused. “Unless they can parachute in.”
“I don’t think they’re going to do that unless there’s a major emergency.”
“I know. I just wish we could at least call out.”
“Again, my thoughts go to the landlines.” That was one thing he didn’t understand. He could see the cell phones not working, but the landlines? That was a head-scratcher.
A noise from the back of the cabin stilled them both. Gideon stepped in front of her, his hand going to his hip, reaching for the weapon he no longer carried. “Stay here.”
“Gideon—”
“Please, Maya. Stay here.” He snagged the poker from the fireplace set for a weapon. “Put your back against the wall.”
She frowned but did as he asked while he moved toward the bedroom, poker held in front of him.
His heart thudded an adrenaline-induced beat that he’d learned to ignore during his days as a soldier.
The only other way out was the bathroom window.
If hers was like his, it would be a large stained glass one that opened and closed like a small door.
He cleared the bedroom, then headed to the bathroom.
The window was open.
He bolted to it in time to see a fleeing figure dart into the tree line and disappear. Gideon hurried back into the den area, where Maya had moved to the French doors that faced in the same direction as the bathroom window.
“I saw him,” she said.
“I’m going after him.”
He opened the French door, vaulted over the railing of the small balcony, and raced in the direction he’d seen the man vanish. The tracks led him only so far and then were gone, lost in the undergrowth of the wooded area.
He stopped and blew out a frustrated breath that fogged the air in front of him. With one last glance around, he aimed his steps back toward the cabin. Maya was standing on the porch holding a lamp. He raised a brow and she flushed. “It was this or a frying pan. This was heavier.”
He chuckled, then sobered. “Well, you won’t need it. He got away.” He took the lamp from her and hefted it. She was right. It was heavy.
She led him back inside, and he put the lamp where it belonged, then shut and locked her bathroom window. When he rejoined her in the main area, she’d pulled two bottles of water from her refrigerator and passed him one. “How did he get in? That’s what I want to know.”
“I can think of a few ways,” he said. “But with the door not being tampered with, I’m wondering if he swiped a housekeeping key card.”
“Management should be able to check the doors and see if someone entered and who the key belonged to.”
“What do you think he was looking for?”
“I have no idea. I don’t have any jewelry worth stealing here.” Her eyes widened. “My laptop.”
“Where is it?”
“In the safe.” She hurried to the bedroom closet, punched the code in, and opened it. A relieved sigh slipped from her. “It’s here.” She pulled it and a stack of papers from the interior and shuffled through them. “Everything looks like it’s in order. I don’t think he got in the safe.”
“You have something on the laptop someone wants?”
“Not that I can think of.” She frowned. “But it’s a high-dollar laptop, and if someone saw me with it in the lodge, they could have decided to snatch it.
” She glanced at him. “I took it down there for a few hours after I arrived to work near the fireplace. It’s the only thing of value that I have.
” She held up the papers. “These are just plans for the ranch. Notes and whatnot.”
“Did you notice anyone paying undue attention to it—or you?”
“No, but I was pretty focused on what I was doing.” She returned it and the papers to the safe. “I guess I’d better go let security know. Maybe they have some cameras set up and can figure out who broke in.”
“It’s worth a try.”
Gideon led the way out of the cabin and back down the hill, keeping an eye on the surroundings. The guy may have disappeared into the woods, but that didn’t mean he was gone.
The lodge patio was a beehive of activity, the resort’s snow-packed entrance far enough away to allow the pretense that vacation was still a go.
However, the evidence of the avalanche on the other side of the advanced ski run was in plain view, and glances kept going to it, accompanied by the question of how long it was going to take for someone to realize they needed help and dig them out.
Gideon wondered that himself. The firepit was huge, with picnic table seating around it, the flames warm and welcoming.
He wouldn’t mind sitting there and having a conversation with Maya once they were finished with the report.
They walked up the steps and he held the door for her.
She entered the main lobby of the lodge, with Gideon right behind her.
They made their way to the registration desk.
“Dr. Sullivan,” the woman said. “How can I help you?”
“Hello, Sydney,” Maya said, her voice low. “I need to report a break-in in my cabin.”
The young woman’s eyes went wide before she swallowed hard. “I’m sorry, did you say break-in?”
“Yes. Someone was in my cabin and slipped out the bathroom window. He ran into the trees behind the unit.”
“Um, wow. I’ve never heard of that happening here. Let me get one of the teens to find security and they can take your report.”
Maya nodded and looked at Gideon. “I’m going to get a pretzel or something and sit by the fire.”
“You’re hungry?”
“After that breakfast we had? No. I just stress eat sometimes.” She shrugged. “This situation seems to call for a cinnamon-sugar pretzel.”
“Okay then, you sit. I’ll get you a pretzel.”
She smiled and his heart tightened into a hard knot of . . . something. Just like it used to do when they were teens. Seems there were some things one didn’t outgrow. He ignored the sensation and looked at Sydney. “We’ll be outside on the terrace. Can you ask them to meet us there?”
“Of course.”
He nodded and Maya shot him a grateful look. “Thanks.” She followed him outside, and he paused to look around for a moment. He couldn’t help wondering if one of the guests was her intruder.
And now he didn’t want to leave her side.