A Snow Covered Nightmare: Refuge Series Book Two
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“Thank you, but I’ve had enough to drink. I have a bit of a ride and the roads are getting slick. I’d better head for home, but thank you,” he said taking her hand again and kissing it.
“Thank you for dinner. I had a lovely evening.”
“Thank you for coming with me. I had a great time too. You know if you need anything you can call me, right?”
“I would but I don’t have your number.”
Stu fumbled for his wallet and pulled out a card. He handed it to her saying, “This has all my numbers on it including my home and cell. I know Ryan is right across the street but call me if you need me.”
“Thank you, I will,” she said taking the card.
“Would you like to go to a movie next week, Cherie?”
“I would like that very much, Stu. Why don’t you call me Thursday or Friday? Good night,” she said.
“I will, good night.” Briah watched him walk to his car and drive off before she shut the porch light off and locked the door. Secretly, she wished he would have run back up the stairs, tore open the door and ravaged her on the kitchen table. That’s what the pirates, princes, and kings did in the romance novels she was so fond of reading.
Instead, she leaned against the door and said to the empty house, “He’s a nice man. Maybe we’ll give him a chance.”
In the days that followed, Briah thought more and more about Jeanette Slater’s death. She bought all of the newspapers and watched the national news for more information, but it seemed once her death was reported everyone lost interest in it. Everyone but Briah, that is. She went on-line to get information directly from the local police web site and news organizations. After a few weeks, they even moved on. With no one that she could contact directly, she gave up looking. Looking for information that is. Now she looked around and over her shoulder constantly. If Jeanette’s death was a random act of violence, then she had nothing to worry about. If it was revenge, then she was next.
The week of Thanksgiving, everything began in earnest. The hordes of early skiers descended on the small town of Stowe. Nearly every motel room was full. The local restaurants were feeding the multitudes. Briah was coming home from work completely exhausted from putting in twelve-hour days.
She began her day in the store, stocking shelves at six AM. She moved to the mountain by ten, patrolling the slopes and trails, looking for anything that might pose a problem for the unfamiliar skiers that day. By two, she was starving and would grab a quick sandwich to eat as she rode a lift back to the top.
Around four in the afternoon, she would check in at the rental shop to see what had broken during the day. She would help with what repairs she could handle and leave for home sometime after six.
Her cheeks and nose were red from the wind and the cold. Her smiles wide like the light from the sun. Her heart free, finally. She was able to leave Aiden up on the mountain and now he was under several feet of snow. That was better than feeling him spooning behind her at night and wrapping her in his arms all day. Some ghosts needed to go to the light.
Saturday night, Stu took her to Burlington to have dinner and see a movie. Burlington is a college town with several nightclubs and a number of nice restaurants. Stu picked an Italian bistro near the University of Vermont campus. He had been there many times and liked both its food and atmosphere.
“What’s good here?” she asked him.
“Everything. I went to UVM so this was our usual date place. If we had the money, that is,” he said with a remembering snort.
“I was never flush with cash in college. How did you manage a dinner out?”
“I worked a part-time job that went full-time on breaks and over the summer. I’m good with my money. Actually, I’m good with more than my money,” he said giving her a look that spoke more than his words could ever do. He reached across the table to hold her hand. Her eyes went to their joined hands.
“I know what you want, Stu. I know that you’re waiting for me to make the first real move. Oh, you may say things, and look at me in such a way that I know exactly what you are thinking. But you’re leaving it up to me, aren’t you?” Briah said with a bolt of honesty that staggered him.
“I’d be lying if I said I don’t want you. I told you I would give you whatever time you need to heal, and I mean that. I’m just reminding you that I’m still here.”
“I can see you, and I feel you. I’m just not completely there yet,” she said turning her hand over and clasping his.
“Okay,” Stu said smiling. “I don’t have an agenda, Cherie. Just lust, adoration, and desire.” They ate their dinner having moved on to less personal conversation about work and town gossip.
They left the restaurant walking hand-in-hand back to his car that was parked a few blocks away, neither of them noticing the dark colored car that was parked behind them. The man behind the wheel noticed them though. He watched as Stu opened her door and closed it once she had gotten in. He watched Stu open his door and get in. He waited for them to pull away from the curb before he started his car and pulled into traffic four cars behind them.
“I don’t give a fuck what your rules are, Brice. You know and I know, David Slater had his wife murdered. This was no random act. It was well planned and executed to look like a random act. This is David Slater we’re talking about. Remember him?” Aiden yelled into his phone.
“You need to calm down and listen to me,” Brice Coughlin said. “We have no evidence that he had anything to do with it. You know we need something concrete to go on. I can’t go off half cocked on your say so. Everything on her is sealed. I don’t even know how to get it unsealed.”
“You know where the fuck she is, Brice. I know you do. Don’t try to deny it. You told me I couldn’t protect her. You told that to Jeanette Slater as well. Now she is dead under your protection. Now what have you got to say?”
“I’m still saying that we don’t know that David had any part in it. Her house was broken into. It was robbed and ransacked. She was tied up and then shot. All the evidence points to an arbitrary robbery. Unless we can come up with anything that points to David we have to go with what the evidence says,” Brice screamed back. Aiden’s phone signaled he had another call. Looking at the display, he saw it was Alisa.
“I have to go. You will be hearing from me,” Aiden said pressing end. “Hi, Alisa. How are you?” he greeted sweetly.
“I’m good but you sound stressed,” she said.
“I’m always stressed; that’s part of the job.”
“I wanted to know if you know what time you’re picking me up for dinner.”
“Is seven okay with you? I’m not finished here and I want to change. That will give me enough time.”
“That’s fine. I’ll see you then. Bye.”
“Thanks, bye,” Aiden said hanging up. He looked at Pete.
“Brice isn’t convinced it was David that killed her?” he said.
“Nope. He thinks it was an indiscriminate act, completely void of suspicion.”
“Those weren’t his words. He only uses one or two syllables. You’re the fancy talker.”
“That’s what he meant. He says he doesn’t know where she is. I think he does.”
“Well, it doesn’t matter. Even if he does, he isn’t going to tell you. What about Alisa? Are you over Briah or not?” Pete said staring at Aiden.
“I thought I was until Jeanette was killed. Then it all came back with a vengeance. I still want Briah so badly.
“It’s nothing against Alisa. She is lovely and wonderful. She deserves a man that loves her like the princess she is. I’m just not that man.”
“You need to tell her, then. The sooner the better, bro. Before she is in too deep with you, cause that’s not right and you know it.”
“I’m going to tell her tonight. I’m still in love with a woman and I don’t know her name or where to find her.”
“Yup. That’s fucked up,” Pete said turning around.
Chapter Twenty
Roland understood why David shot Dan Post. After all, he had been messing around with his wife. What he didn’t get was why he hadn’t used him to do the hit. He was the professional in the family. He would have never left a witness and David would have had a legitimate alibi. Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!
Now he had to clean up the mess, one woman at a time. It took Roland two months to find Jeanette and Briah’s whereabouts. The Feds did a reasonably good job protecting their witnesses. Still, Roland had been in the business of killing for almost forty years. They would have had to send them to the Moon or Mars for him not to find them. In this case, Florida and Vermont posed no problem.
Roland had enjoyed his time with Jeanette. He had always liked her. She was fun and witty. Not so much, when she’d opened her door to see him standing outside of it. Her smile had disappeared quickly as she’d known what he was there for. He didn’t enjoy killing women as much as men. He’d rather fuck them, but you can’t always do what you want. In this case, she’d deserved it.
He’d tied her up and had her watch as he went through her things. He’d taken some of her jewelry, plus any cash and credit cards he found, just to make it look more real. He’d shot her, just once, right in the head. Then, he’d calmly walked out with his toolbox, looking every bit the washing machine technician for the neighbors.
Roland drove from Florida to Vermont, wanting to stay off a flight manifest. Paying cash for gas and motels also left no trace of his mission. Now he found himself following the pretty ski bum around waiting for his chance to cause an unfortunate accident to befall her.
Another fake robbery of a woman in federal protection would cause a major investigation. His source for information would go underground so far he would never find him again. He needed all of his snitches to stay where he could easily find them. Thusly, his day began…
Briah was at the top of the mountain, deciding which trail truly piqued her interest. Today, because she felt feral and wanted a challenge, she took one of the “Front Four” trails. Starr had steep pitches, natural hazards like rocks and trees, and it was far less groomed than the well-traveled trails.
It was snowing and the wind had picked up, making the conditions treacherous for a novice or intermediate skier. But, for Briah, it was perfect because the aforementioned skiers would stay off the advanced trails.
As she came to the lip of the trail, the wind blew up the mountain filling her face with snow. “Thank you,” she yelled meaning every word. Snow in her face made her feel alive with anticipation.
As she attacked the trail with the aggression she only showed to nature, Roland watched from below with his binoculars. Skiing was not his forte. He was a ‘sit by the pool and drink’ sort of killer. If he couldn’t come up with a plan to exterminate her in a reasonable fashion, he was going to have to sub out to a mountain man. He didn’t relish that idea, as the less people who knew about a hit, the better off he was.
Briah was a challenge because she was either outdoors with lots of witnesses, up the mountain where he wouldn’t go, in her house, or with the boyfriend. He was thinking that he might have to do a twofer. Take out her and the boyfriend in a fiery crash or a drive by.
Taking a deep breath, he blew it out through his mouth. “You are proving to be a challenge Miss Spencer/Ames. I’m sure you would answer to both, wouldn’t you?” he sneered.
Briah’s first run of the day was always for her and the mountain. It was a “Good morning and what do you have for me today” kind of run. Her body, beginning with her feet, told her what the mountain was thinking that day. The snow telling her the story of the dreams that had taken place overnight.
Carla, the receptionist she’d met on her first day, had become a friend. She had given Briah the moniker of ‘snow whisperer’ as a joke, but it had become the name that the other employees used when referring to Briah’s snow-sense.
After her first run, Briah would post the conditions she had found. Other members of her team would do the same, skiing on different trails. Together, their reports would set up the day for guests’ skiing adventures.
Briah was posting the conditions on the board next to the ski lifts when she heard, “You are the most beautiful ski patrol woman I’ve ever seen.” She smiled as she had recognized the voice. She finished writing before turning around.
“Since you don’t ski, I can’t take that as a complement. Exactly how many ski patrol women have you seen?” she said laughing.
“I’ve seen a few. When you live near a mountain, it comes with the territory,” Stu smiled. “I was wondering if I might take you to lunch or dinner today.”
“I work through lunch most days. I can do dinner, though.”
“Good then. I’ll pick you up around six. We’ll make it an early night,” he said walking up to her and kissing her forehead. Briah quickly turned her head to look around. She was not comfortable with displays of affection at work. Especially because she was the manager, and should set an example for her crew.
“Behave,” she scolded, seeing that no one had been looking at them.
“Don’t worry; I knew no one was around. I wouldn’t embarrass you on purpose, Cherie.”
“I know, I’m just always looking over my shoulder,” she said which was more truth than she cared to admit.
“Okay, I’ll see you later. Don’t work too hard today,” he said, turning to walk back to his car. She watched him walk away, knowing that tonight she was going to have to let him go. It wasn’t fair to him that she wasn’t ready to move on and commit to him. Not fair because she didn’t know when or if she would ever be ready.
“It’s our Christmas present from the in-laws. Not that I don’t want to go but I don’t ski. I’d rather go somewhere warm for a week. A week in Vermont in the winter is not my idea of a vacation,” Pete said miserably.
“Cheer up, you can send the kids skiing and climb back in bed with the Mrs. They’ll have fun, and so will you,” Aiden said laughing.
“Right, she’ll let the kids go without us…not! We might miss a picture-perfect moment or something equally as important.”
“When you get there, sign them up for lessons or camp or something. Where there is a will, there is a way.”
“True! The lodge might have activities we can sign them up for. I’ll have to check into that. Family friendly means kid stuff. I’ll even pay for a babysitter, as long as they take them somewhere,” Pete said raising his eyebrow.
On the nineteenth of December, Pete and his family were on a plane headed East to Vermont to spend their Christmas break with the von Trapp Family in Stowe, Vermont.
Clair’s parents generously paid for a beautiful condo with maid service and lift tickets for their three children. That and a nice check for meals, a car rental and any other expenditure they might have.
They opened the door of the condo to see a fully decorated Christmas tree with presents already under it. The kids practically broke their necks in their attempts to get to the gifts and see who got which one first. “Hey, knock it off guys,” Pete yelled at them. “You can’t open them until Christmas anyway. So back off!”
They all protested until they decided to pick which bedroom they wanted and scurried off up the stairs. Clair said, “I’m starving. What do you say we get unpacked and organized and then go through the town? Maybe we’ll find a charming place to eat.”
Pete’s face mirrored his feelings on finding a charming place. Pete’s tastes were more attuned to an all you could eat buffet. Abundance over atmosphere any day of any week. However, he had learned in his fifteen years of marriage, to eat wherever Clair wanted and just shut up about it.
Once in the car, they traveled through the town, pointing out all of the places they wanted to go to on their visit. Pete figured they would need at least two more weeks to cover it a
ll. They turned onto a side street from the Mountain Road and found Gracie’s.
The family had had to leave their dog Nike at home. The kids were upset about this, as the dog was both friend and confidant. They walked into Gracie’s and right into doggy heaven. The entire restaurant was decorated in a dog theme. From pictures and cutouts to statues and menu items.
Their server suggested the burgers as being the best in the area. Pete picked his as a two-third pound Petey Burger, reading that a dollar from each purchase went to a local animal shelter. He got a side of slaw and onion rings. Clair and the kids all ordered equally appropriately named doggy burgers, enjoying the atmosphere they had wandered into for dinner.
The food was great and they even had a doggy bag, a white chocolate doggy bag filled with mint chocolate mousse and milk bone shaped cookies, for dessert. Clair didn’t want one. She was only going to take a taste of Pete’s. He had to fend her off or she would have finished it.
They paid their bill and walked out to the car. The process of making sure that everyone was buckled in took a few minutes. Finally, Pete got in the driver’s seat, put the key in the ignition, and started the car. The bright lights come on; he looked up and saw a man and woman crossing in front of the car.
At first, it just appeared to be a couple out for dinner. But Pete’s spidey sense started tingling, and he couldn’t stop staring at the woman. “She is pretty, but do you have to stare at her? Now you’re going to tell me it’s okay to look as long as you don’t touch,” Clair says annoyed.
“That’s her!” he said, continuing to stare as the couple walked into the restaurant.
“Who?” Clair said looking at him confused.
“Briah. That was Briah Spencer. I’m sure of it,” he said opening the car door.
“Aiden’s Briah? What would she be doing here?”
“This must be where they sent her. I have to make sure. I’ll be right back,” he said getting out of the car and walking to a window. The couple he had seen in his headlights were now taking off their coats and sitting at a table, close enough to the window that Pete could get a very good look at her.