Weathering the Storm: Secrets in the Snow, # 6

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Weathering the Storm: Secrets in the Snow, # 6 Page 11

by Roz Marshall


  He pushed his shades up onto his forehead, his brown fringe sticking out at weird angles as he did so. The white butterfly mark of his sunglasses around his pale blue eyes made his nutmeg-brown skin look even more tanned. His suntan also made his teeth look whiter… and then she realised that she could see his teeth because he was smiling. "Congratulations, Debbie."

  He was holding something out to her, and she took it in a daze. A badge. A UKASI Grade Three badge. She looked up at him. "I passed?"

  "You passed." He held out his hand. "Well done!"

  I passed! A bubbling excitement welled up inside, threatening to spill out of her eyes. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" She threw her arms around the bemused trainer, and nearly knocked him off his feet, before her sense of decorum took hold and she let him go. "Sorry!"

  He grinned. "It's okay." He shooed her off. "Now go and tell your friends, and enjoy what's left of the season!"

  Down near the tow, she could see Callum hovering, and her heart did a wee flip. She grinned back at the trainer. "Right. I will. I absolutely will. Thanks again." And with that, she pushed off and found her way down to the tow and into Callum's arms.

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  An extract from The Snow Patrol

  A Secrets in the Snow short story

  Debbie spluttered for breath and struggled into a sitting position. What on earth just happened? Ripping off her goggles, she shook the snow out of her hair, damp curls whipping against chilled cheeks.

  Once she'd dug her skis out of the snow, her dilemma became clear. The rear part of one of the bindings had slipped out of place and it was now far too wide for her boot. She sighed. That's what I get for buying skis off eBay.

  Squeezing the clips, she tried to force it back into place, but it wouldn't budge.

  Just my luck. She grimaced. Why, oh why, had she decided on 'just one more run'? She should've gone off to the pub with the others, and not been so obsessed about practising for her instructor exam.

  Mist was touching the hilltop now and everything was deathly quiet; the background hum and clink of the ski lift on the main run over the ridge had stopped, and this itinerant off-piste loop was devoid of other skiers.

  A tendril of dread wound its way around her heart. Scotland's vast wildernesses could be beautiful in winter, but she knew that they could also be treacherous for the unwary.

  Or the unlucky.

  "Help!" she tried to call out, but her throat constricted and the blanket of snow swallowed the sound of her voice. Stumbling to her feet, she cupped gloved hands around her mouth and shouted again, "Heeeeeelllp!"

  No answer. Shit.

  No signal on her mobile phone. Shit, shit!

  There's no way I can get down on one ski, it's too steep. Her stomach churned. I'll have to walk out. Hands trembling, she fashioned an impromptu walking stick by clipping her skis together, and set off.

  Ski boots, however, were not designed for walking in deep snow and her progress was slow. After about fifty meters that felt like a mile, she stopped for a breather and her heart sunk. Visibility had worsened, and the top of the hill was now bathed in cloud, its miasma creeping inexorably down the slope. I'm so stupid. Why did I go off-piste on my own? Nobody knows I'm here.

  Coire Tannasg might be just a short way from the main runs, but right now it felt as remote as Mount Everest — and just as deadly…

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  A Note from the Author

  Thank you for reading, and I really hope you enjoyed the story. If so, please take a moment to leave a review and tell a friend!

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  Other books in the series

  The Secrets in the Snow books, in chronological order:

  Episode 1, "Winter Arrives"

  Short Story 1, "Skiing with Santa"

  Short Story 2, "A Dream for Hogmanay"

  Episode 2, "Fear of Falling"

  Short Story 3, "The Snow Patrol"

  Episode 3, "My Snowy Valentine"

  "Secrets in the Snow, Volume 1", the early season Collection, contains Episodes 1-3. It is available in both eBook and trade Paperback formats.

  Episode 4, "The Racer Trials"

  Episode 5, "Snow Blind"

  Episode 6, "Weathering the Storm" completes the series.

  About the Author

  Roz lives in Scotland with her husband and the obligatory dog and cat. Her writing experience includes screenwriting, songwriting, web pages and even sentiments for greeting cards!

  Here’s where you’ll find her:

  rozmarshallauthor

  rozmarshall.co.uk/books

  Glossary

  Bluebird day: A perfect skiing day with a clear blue sky, bright sun, and fresh snow

  Button tow: A type of ski lift where skiers are pulled up the hill, straddling a plastic 'button' at the bottom of a short metal pole suspended from an ascending tow line

  Canon: Camera equipment manufacturer

  Child Protection: Services or procedures designed to protect young people from harm or abuse

  Corrie: A bowl or hollow in the (Scottish) mountains

  Donkey: Surf speak for idiot

  Drag tow: See button tow

  Egger: Collector of rare bird eggs, usually taken illegally from the nests

  Gnarly: Rough going; bumpy snow. Also heavy, intense, difficult

  IIRC: If I remember correctly

  IRL: In real life (as opposed to in the game or in role-play)

  K: Okay

  Laters: Corruption of 'see you later'

  Newbie: Someone who is new to playing an online game

  P45: Formal documentation for an employee leaving work. Used as slang for being sacked.

  Pwned: Internet slang. A corruption of the word 'owned', meaning 'soundly defeated'.

  RSPB: Royal Society for the Protection of Birds

  Sabaton: A foot defence of mail or armour

  Sack (someone) off: Dump a boy/girlfriend

  Schtum: Keep schtum = keep quiet; don't mention it

  Skint: Penniless; poor

  UKASI: Fictional snowsports instructors organisation. Grade 3 is their lowest qualification, and Grade 1 the highest

  Characters

  Allan Winter: Jude's husband

  Anna Staunton: Ski pupil

  Angus: White Cairns village postmaster

  Ben Dalton: White Cairns ski instructor

  Betty McDonald: Librarian. Runs the local mobile library.

  Callum Johnstone: White Cairns ski instructor

  Davie: Ski lift operator (liftie)

  Debbie McNeill: White Cairns ski instructor

  Ed Griffiths: Manager of Ski-Easy ski school

  Ethan: Kaitlyn's boyfriend

  EvenStar: Spock's online friend

  Fiona Easton: White Cairns ski instructor

  Forbes Sinclair: Ski area operations manager

  Geoff Easton: Senior ski patroller. Fiona's husband

  Harry: Ski pupil

  Hayley: Kiwi girl

  Izzy Sherman: Social Worker from Highland Region

  Jean Potter: Sandy's wife. Runs North Lodge B&B

  Jude Winters: Acting manager, White Cairns Ski School

  Kaitlyn: Talent Show audience member

  Klaus: Owner of Ski-Easy ski school

  Lachie: White Cairns village postman

  Lucy Winter: Jude and Allan's daughter

  Marty Ferguson: White Cairns snowboard instructor

  Mike Cole: White Cairns chief instructor

  Mr (James)
Paton: Head of PE, Beechfields School

  Sandy Potter (Santa): White Cairns ski instructor

  Simon Jones (Spock): White Cairns ski/snowboard instructor

  Toby: Ski pupil

  Tyrone Palmer: Haywoods Hotels representative

  William: Ski pupil

  Zoë Agnew: White Cairns snowboard instructor

  Acknowledgments

  Thank you to Ailidh, Debbie (not the one in the story!) and Andrea, my beta-reading and editing team, who add extra polish and value to my scribblings.

 

 

 


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