Black Flame (18 page)

The thing was, his friends were the closest thing to family that Jimmy had. The phrase “family of choice” had always struck him as mawkish and sentimental, but for the first time, Jimmy was beginning to understand what it meant. He had no siblings, but in every way that mattered, his friends filled that void.

He really had to make sure he didn’t lose them. But did that mean losing Deneen?

Except she wasn’t his. A few make-out sessions hardly constituted a relationship, something he’d had to explain more than once to distraught females. Who was the distraught one now? It was enough to make Jimmy want to throw his hiking poles into a snow drift—and that was exactly the kind of illogical thinking that had him so worried.

Just a little farther. Just so he could figure all of this out.

There hadn’t been a sound from the back half of the bunk house in hours. Matthew and Jayne were apparently going to sleep the day away. Deneen kept herself busy, but her mind whirled and churned. She tidied the house, and then she rearranged furniture for a while. She got her sketchbook out and re-designed the terrible living room with updated furniture and window treatments. While she was trying to see if the old bookcase’s finish could be easily repainted, she made a discovery.

Her sister had obviously been taking pictures ever since she arrived in North Dakota. In an old cigar box on a shelf next to a stack of well-thumbed paperbacks, she discovered dozens of photographs of the ranch, her truck, the rigs…but most of all, of the friends who’d moved here from Arkansas and, as time went on, the women that Chase and Cal had fallen in love with. There were photographs of them outdoors, assembled around the big kitchen table, and working on the bunkhouse. Photos of Chase singing on stage at what looked like a cozy old tavern, of Cal at his swearing-in as a police officer. Zane and Chase and Jimmy returning from the rigs, covered with dirt; and Matthew in a frilly apron with a plate of pancakes.

It made Deneen’s heart squeeze. They were all clearly so happy here. Every one of them had found work that they were good at. They were moving ahead with their lives, falling in love…and now Jayne was even having a baby.

Everyone had a place in this world, it seemed, except for her.

“This is stupid,” Deneen scolded herself, swallowing down the lump in her throat. She looked outside at the blowing snow; most of it was being stirred up by the wind, but were those fresh flakes starting to fall? It was only three o’clock, but the sky was starting to darken. Deneen didn’t know much about weather, especially cold weather, but this didn’t look good. No—not good at all.

And Jimmy wasn’t back.

Deneen did know one thing about snow: it killed. Indiscriminately. It didn’t just go after the weak and the old, either. Skiers were always being found, frozen to death, in drifts just a few feet off the runs. Boy Scout leaders set out for day hikes and never returned. Even people who were supposed to know better were vulnerable; hadn’t the great explorer, Shackleton somebody or other, gotten a whole ship stuck in the ice and snow?

It was crazy, since she’d only known Jimmy a few days, but she was sure he wouldn’t do something as dangerous as stay out hiking in a storm. It wasn’t
logical
.

His tracks, however, were still fresh in the snow. They wouldn’t be in a few hours, when the storm hit for real. If she was careful, and left right now, Deneen could not only follow him, but she would be reinforcing his tracks with her own, to chart a course that they could then follow back to the house.

And then everyone would see that she was not only brave but dependable too.

She stood outside Matthew and Jayne’s door one final time. If only they would wake up…if only there were someone else to help. But after the scare her sister had—her
pregnant
sister, oh sweet Pete, she was going to be an auntie—and the stress of the accident and the hospital, Deneen didn’t dare disturb them until they’d had their rest.

Especially since this was probably no big deal. As Deneen pulled on her coat, her kitty mittens, her faux fur topped boots, she reminded herself that Jimmy was more than competent. He was smart—no, he was a freaking genius—and resourceful and capable and there was probably a very good reason why he wasn’t back yet. She would just follow the path for fifteen minutes, no more. Then, if she hadn’t found him, she would turn around and come back and wake up Matthew and they could call Cal, if necessary, and figure out what to do next.

My, it was cold out here. As Deneen trudged along Jimmy’s footsteps, she tugged her hood more tightly around her face and shoved her hands deeper in her pockets. She tried to put her feet where Jimmy’s had been, but his stride was too long. Because he had those very long legs, she reminded herself, which went nicely with that sculpted torso and those muscular shoulders and arms. This line of thinking warmed her considerably and kept her mind off the cold as she went deeper into the woods, following the path Jimmy had made. No one else had been in these woods since the snow fell. No human, anyway; there were plenty of rabbit and bird and deer tracks, and others that might belong to opossum or raccoon or whatever other sort of critter could stand to live up in this inhospitable climate. As well as those other tracks, those ones that she dearly hoped belonged to someone’s dog, but just might be…no, she wasn’t going to think about that. About a wolf pack out trotting around looking for tasty morsels. Hungry wolves that hadn’t had a good meal in a while, looking for something to bring back to the lair to feed their wolf babies.

Which was ridiculous, of course. Deneen checked her watch—fifteen minutes, and no sign of Jimmy. No sign of the ranch, either, because the forest had followed the curve of the land over several hills and a frozen creek. She turned in place, carefully noting what direction she had been headed and marking landmarks in her mind. It wasn’t really necessary, because the tracks—two sets now, hers and Jimmy’s—were fresh and clear, and only a few flakes were falling.

Ahead was a slight rise; the view beyond was obscured by the trees that grew along the ridge. It would only take another five minutes or so to reach the top, and from there, Deneen could see down the other side. If Jimmy was there—stuck, mauled by a bear, whatever—she’d see him. If not, then she’d turn around and go back and get help.

She checked her phone one last time—still no service—and set out. She crossed the frozen creek with care, aware there was ice underneath the layer of snow on top. She went slowly, testing each step before setting her full weight down, and when she reached the other side and started up the hill, she breathed a sigh of relief.

And fell down.

Sitting on her ass in the snow, she figured out quickly that it was a submerged tree root that had snagged her boot. It was impossible to see under the snow blanket, and it only protruded an inch or two above the ground, but that had been enough. It was more humiliating than painful; the pain in her ass and the foot she’d tripped over were masked by the cold, which would have been a bigger problem if she wasn’t prepared. But Deneen knew when to throw in the towel, and she would turn around just as soon as she checked out the view on the other side of the hill.

She took a breath and tried to get to her feet. Her ankle gave out under her, and the sharp pain that shot up her leg wasn’t good at all.

Deneen sat down hard a second time. And this time she was pretty sure she wasn’t getting up for a while.

Jimmy hefted the grocery bag in his free arm as he opened the door to the ranch. It probably wasn’t his best idea, walking all the way back from town carrying twenty pounds of groceries, but when his hike had taken him all the way to Route 15 he’d decided to come back along the road rather than through the woods, especially as the storm was approaching fast and dark was gathering.

The walk had done him good. The exertion calmed his restless nerves, and the problem of Deneen—which he still had no idea how to solve—seemed more manageable. What was needed was a long talk, an airing of feelings, though that phrase had always made him uncomfortable. He would be frank about his emotional outburst and perhaps consult a professional. It was time to try something new. “Learn from yesterday,” as Einstein said, “live for today, and hope for tomorrow.”

In the grocery, he’d passed over his usual soy and whole grain selections, choosing instead a variety of ingredients he hoped Matthew might enjoy preparing. Though after his accident, and possibly some post-traumatic stress, he might be unfit to cook, so perhaps Deneen would agree to assist Jimmy. The thought cheered him as he walked home.

He would be frank about his erratic behavior, he decided. Perhaps she would understand. Perhaps she would give him another chance despite his abhorrent behavior in the hospital. Now that her sister had returned home, Deneen had a wedding to plan, didn’t she? And if it was a task worthy of engaging a specialist, it might be complicated enough to keep her in town for a while. How long? Well…during the holidays, it was probably more difficult to conduct business with all the various vendors associated with nuptials. Dress merchants, photographers, cake bakers, florists—who knew what else was involved? Maybe Deneen wouldn’t even be able to begin to plan until the new year, which was almost a week away.

A week! So much could happen in a week. Jimmy walked into the bunkhouse whistling, feeling better than he had in ages, positively invigorated by the brisk walk. Before he had a chance to set down the groceries, Jayne ran into the room, looking worried.

“Is Deneen with you?”

“Deneen?” Jimmy said, setting down the bag. “What do you mean? Isn’t she here?”

“No,” Matthew said, coming into the room, pulling on a sweatshirt. “She left a note saying she was going to see if she could find you. And her footprints—well, someone’s footprints, anyway, and there were only the three of us here—go out across the yard following yours.”

“I know your footprints from the tread on your boots,” Jayne said. “And I know her foot size because it’s the same as mine. Jimmy, why would she follow you into the woods?”

Jimmy had no idea. But it was nearly dark, and the temperature was dropping fast. “Get your coat,” he said tersely to Matthew. “We’re going after her.”

#

Deneen wasn’t scared, at first. How big could the woods be? Surely the road was nearby. She tried to remember the direction they’d come when Jimmy first brought her here, the turns they had taken. She busied herself trying to find a branch she could use as a crutch, hopping along and wincing with pain every time her foot made contact with the ground. Soon, it became apparent that she wasn’t going to make it anywhere before night fell.

Her fingers were freezing in the inadequate mittens, and so was the tip of her nose. She would have cried except she was pretty sure that her tears would freeze to her eyelashes. The snow had melted on her butt where she’d fallen and now her cheeks were frozen solid. Probably some of her body parts would need to be amputated, if she got out alive.

“Oh, damn,” Deneen muttered miserably. Because, as much as she didn’t want to die, she really didn’t want to die in such a stupid way before she had a chance to explain to everyone. That she had been trying to find Jimmy, to keep him from the same horrible death she was about to suffer.

There was always the hope that he would double back and find her, but given the approach of nightfall, it seemed impossible. He must have walked home along another route. He was probably back at the bunkhouse right now, fiddling around in his workshop while Jayne and Matthew wondered where she’d gone to find him. “Who knows?” she could hear her sister saying, in her fondly exasperated tone. “That’s just Deneen.”

But now the snow was beginning to fall in earnest. Deneen sat down on a fallen log. It looked like it had been in the forest for many years, shelter to the tiny creatures who made their homes in its nooks. If she got hungry, maybe she could look underneath. Like Timon in
The Lion King
, she would find some caterpillars to eat. And there was plenty of snow, so she wouldn’t die of thirst.

Deneen’s mood sank to an all-time low. She wouldn’t die of hunger or thirst, but her well-fed, properly hydrated dead body would be discovered here, frozen solid. She had compared her situation to the wrong movie. Instead of Timon, she would probably look like Jack Nicholson at the end of
The Shining
, frozen to death in the hedge maze with icicles coming down her chin.

“No crying,” she scolded herself when she felt her eyes get moist. She hugged herself tighter, shivering. “And no feeling sorry for yourself!”

She dug in her pocket for her lipstick. If she was going to die in the northern wilderness, at least she was going to look presentable when they found her.

#

“Slow down,” Matthew called. “You’re not going to do anyone any good if you overheat and then pass out and freeze to death.”

Jimmy forced himself to slow to a walk. Each of them was carrying a flashlight, the beams illuminating the ground ahead of them. It was fully dark now, the moon obscured by swirling snow. In other circumstances, the woods would have looked pretty. But knowing that Deneen was out here somewhere—unprepared and defenseless—made it impossible to see the woods as anything but treacherous.

Jayne had stayed behind, in case Deneen found a way to call. She was calling Cal when they set out, hoping he could marshal resources along Pedersen Road and Route 15. If Deneen had been able to follow Jimmy’s tracks before the storm began, she should turn up there. But if Deneen had turned west, if she had lost his trail and tried to turn around and gotten disoriented, she could be anywhere in a hundred miles of forest and plains. The rescue team would certainly find her, nonetheless.

But would they be in time?

For the first time that he could recall, Jimmy struggled to suppress the facts and figures that had always soothed him during difficult times. At this moment, he didn’t want to remember the statistics on body temperature and frostbite. He didn’t want to think about how long Deneen could walk before she was exhausted.