Chapter 4
Four
MAYA WOKE AND FROZE, her ears turned toward the closed door. Silence. That was good, right? The memories washed back into the forefront of her mind, and she sat up. Looked at the clock. She’d been asleep for about three hours.
And she hadn’t had a nightmare. Was it because Gideon had been in the next room and she’d subconsciously known she could rest?
Maybe. It was weird, but . . . nice.
She relaxed a fraction. If anything had happened, he would have awakened her.
Then the beautiful and beloved fragrance of coffee triggered her craving, and she hurried to the bathroom.
Grateful for his presence, she put herself together before peering out to see her empty couch.
Sounds came from the kitchen, and for a moment her heart fluttered and a longing for more than the brew hit her. She wanted this.
With Gideon? Well, yes, she’d always wanted him, but this in general.
Having someone by her side. Someone to wake up to, to share joys and sorrows.
Share life. Someone who would watch out for her while she slept.
Someone who could make her coffee. She slipped out of the bedroom and walked over to sit in the nearest barstool facing him.
He looked up and smiled. “Feel better?”
“I do. Thank you. I was able to sleep, knowing you were nearby.”
“I’m glad.” He tilted his head. “Lila came by and said they didn’t get anything off the security footage at the firepit.
She said you could see the person slam into you, but they were covered up in winter gear.
She couldn’t tell if it was an accident or not, but they didn’t look back. She did notice that.”
“Right.” She sighed. “I’m not surprised. Disappointed, but not surprised.”
“Same.” He hesitated, then said, “Can you think of someone who has it out for you? A grudge? Someone you wronged in your past? Anything?”
She shook her head. “I’ve thought about it, trust me. But no, I can’t think of why someone would do this. And we’re here. I mean, if someone from my past had it out for me, they would have had to follow me here, right?”
“Yes.”
“So, no. I can’t fathom it.”
Gideon pursed his lips, then sighed after a few seconds. “Well, keep thinking, but in the meantime, this might sound . . . bad . . . in light of things, but do you feel up to a little potential fun today?”
Fun? She raised a brow. “It doesn’t sound bad.
I might feel a little guilty, though. Then again .
. .” Sure they were stuck, and they had some injured people to take care of until help could reach them, but there’d been no tragedies.
Both she and Gideon were doing their part to help—and more. “What did you have in mind?”
“I thought about the whole feeling-guilty thing, but I don’t know .
. . we’ve both done a lot to help. Almost everyone is pitching in.
But we need to take care of ourselves too.
And that means time off unless there’s an emergency.
” He stopped. “Well, an emergency other than being trapped at a lovely resort that’s still mostly functional. ”
She tilted her head and thought about it. He wasn’t wrong. “Okay, as long as no one needs immediate help, I’m game. What did you have in mind?”
“Snowmobiling. Like we used to do when we were kids. If we enjoy it, maybe we can ask Vance and Ellie if they want to go with us tomorrow.”
“Yeah. Okay. That does sound fun. On one condition.”
“Name it.”
“I’d like to run by the clinic and see if they need anything before we go. It feels weird not to be able to just call.” She frowned. “In one sense, it’s really nice not to be tied to a device. In another, it sure is inconvenient.”
“But the teenagers are loving making the extra money with their messenger service.”
“True.” She smiled. “They’re a creative bunch for sure.” She sipped the coffee he’d poured for her, relishing the hot brew sliding over her tongue and down her throat. Then she grinned. “Wonder if they’ve heard about the treasure.”
He chuckled. “If they’ve been coming here for any length of time, they’ve heard of it.”
“I can’t believe we fell for that. Believing there were secret tunnels and gold. We searched for hours every day when we weren’t on the slopes. Can you believe our parents did that to us?”
“Well, it kept us out of their hair so they could have a little fun and not have us constantly underfoot—or in too much trouble.”
“I suppose that was the purpose. Wonder who first made up the story? Started the rumors?”
“A very tired parent.”
She laughed. “Probably.” She sighed. “I’m hungry again. Wanna grab some sandwiches from the restaurant and take them with us on the snowmobiles?”
“That sounds like a great plan.”
Maya headed toward her bedroom and changed into warmer clothes and hiking boots, then grabbed the new heavy coat she’d purchased from the ski shop, hat, and gloves.
When she returned to the kitchen, Gideon had shrugged back into his winter gear.
He’d also cleaned the kitchen. “You’re pretty handy to have around. ”
His eyes glinted with some kind of emotion she didn’t recognize but wondered at. The look disappeared and he nodded to the door. “I’m ready when you are.”
“I’m right behind you.”
Thirty minutes later, they had their sandwiches, chips, water bottles, and two big slices of chocolate cake packed in a small cooler strapped to the back of Gideon’s machine.
They also had strict instructions to stay on the snowmobile trails and not to attempt getting to the other side of the avalanche slide.
“Ski patrol has been up there, looking for anyone trapped and in need of rescue,” the rental manager said.
“Brought three people in two hours ago.”
“Do they need medical attention?” Maya asked.
“Thankfully, no. They had provisions in a backpack and found shelter in an empty cabin. It’s a huge area, and they were closer to this side than the other but didn’t get caught up in it. It took some finagling, but we managed to get them across before more snow slid down in a minor avalanche.”
“Oh, thank goodness you got them.” She frowned. “I didn’t hear anything that sounded like another avalanche.”
“It was small. Still dangerous to get caught in, but it didn’t last long.” He shook his head. “It’s possible there are people still trapped on the other side, so listen carefully while you’re up there, will you?”
“Of course.”
He nodded. “All right. You guys be careful. It’s safe enough if you stay on the snowmobile runs and away from the problem areas. Everything’s marked.”
“Thank you.”
They mounted the machines, and Maya motioned for him to take the lead.
Zigzagging up the mountain on the snow-covered paths and through the woods was exhilarating.
Just like when she was a teen, without a care in the world.
She crested the top and allowed the machine to slow.
Gideon was slightly ahead of her, and she glided to a stop beside him. “That was amazing.”
“Look.”
She gazed out over the panoramic scene and took in the beauty.
“I remember coming up here to watch the sunrises with my dad.” She cut her eyes over to him.
“You and Vance were always too lazy to get up. Sully, too, when he joined us.” Collin Sullivan, a.k.a.
Sully, her cousin who was a special agent with the FBI.
He laughed. “I made it a couple of times.”
“Hmm. So you say. I never saw you here.”
“Well, I did, I promise. How is Sully by the way?”
“Doing well. Loves his job putting the bad guys away. Kinda wish he was here with us right now, to be honest.”
“Yeah, that would be nice.” He laughed again, and when the laughter faded, there was that look again.
“What are you thinking?” she asked.
“That you haven’t changed much.”
“Meaning?”
“You were always the one who could make me laugh no matter what was going on in the world—or in my head.”
“Me? How so?”
He shrugged. “Back then, it mostly had to do with Jacob and learning to laugh again.”
Her heart still hurt when she thought about Jacob. “That was a tough time for everyone.”
“After Jacob was killed, Mom was never really the same. She tried to put on a good show for us, but you could tell underneath her exterior, the light was never quite as bright as it was before he died.”
“I know,” Maya said, her voice soft while she remembered the young man full of life and potential. “Things were never the same for any of us after that. I don’t see how they could ever be. But we all learned to laugh and live again. In time.”
“Not Mom,” Gideon said. “She was really angry with me for going into the army. She ranted and raved for days when I finally told her.”
“What? Why?”
“She had already lost one son, and now her other and only remaining son was putting himself in danger. On purpose. She asked me how I could do that to her.” He shook his head.
“But that was my dream—I’ve wanted to join the army since I was just a kid playing with the little green army men in the sunroom.
And she knew that. I actually talked to a therapist about the whole thing, and he was a very wise person who convinced me that I could not live my life for my mother. That she would come around.”
“And did she?”
“I think so. Now that I’m safe and out of the army. For a long time, she would hardly talk to me.”
“Your mother? No way.”
“Trust me. It was tense.” He glanced at her. “When I was home and we all hung out, you were the one who could make me laugh.”
She dropped her gaze and tried to ignore the heat climbing into her cheeks. “I’m glad. I didn’t like seeing you sad.” She shrugged. “But truthfully? I can’t see your mom being that way. I’m sorry.”
He shot her a tight smile. “That’s all in the past. Let’s grab the food and eat. I’m starving. How about you?”
So he didn’t want to talk about it anymore. Fine. “I can always eat.”