by Cate Nolan
Looking out at the frigid water, Jackson fell back in time, remembering how he used to race his brother across the icy lake by their house. His brother had planned to play professional hockey, and it had irked him that Jackson could beat him across the lake. Even though he had been two years younger, Sam had been intent on besting his big brother. He’d practiced and practiced. That last weekend when he’d been home, Sam had challenged him to a race—and won. Just thinking of it now brought waves of loss that bowed Jackson over. He instinctively pulled in on himself, curling his body inward to protect against the pain.
It was useless. Once opened, memories came flooding in. Other Christmases. Presents piled under the tree; his father going ahead to make sure Santa was gone before the boys came down. Playing with their new toys on Christmas morning. Later, when they were older, challenging each other to marathon video-game matches. He and Sam had been best buddies as well as brothers. Losing his parents had been bad enough, but losing Sam... Jackson sucked in a breath. He’d thought he would die, too.
Even without seeing or hearing a sound, Jackson knew the minute Callie entered the room behind him. He felt her presence, and his body involuntarily stiffened. Part of him welcomed her company as a respite from his thoughts, but his pride hoped she would read his body language and go away. It was hard enough to fight the memories on his own. He didn’t want her witnessing his struggle.
And there he went repeating old patterns, cutting off all the people who could help. Too bad. It was the only way he knew to survive. And Callie wasn’t here to help him. It was his job to protect her.
Rigid, he waited until he felt her retreat, then he donned his coat and headed outside. He hadn’t experienced the relief he’d expected when she withdrew. Loneliness invaded his heart, replacing the warmth she brought. Perhaps cold air would put his memories back where they belonged and help him rebuild his armor.
* * *
Callie heard the door close and walked back into the living room. She hadn’t wanted to disturb Jackson before, but there had been such a profound sadness emanating from him that it was all she could do not to rush forward. She’d retreated to pray for him. Maybe that had been a mistake. Maybe she should have gone forward and prayed with him instead.
She walked over to where he had drawn back the curtains. Hiding behind one side, she could watch his progress down to the lake. When he reached the shore, he just stood there. What was he thinking? Was he troubled by the case, or were his problems more personal?
He looked so alone.
On the surface, that sounded silly. Obviously he was alone. But this went deeper. He gave off the sense of a man who had been by himself a long time. A man who might not know any other way to be. From what little she’d seen, he depended on no one, got close to no one. She had the strongest urge to reach out, to offer comfort.
It would be rejected. She knew that instinctively.
She stood for a long time, watching him watch the lake. When finally he turned to come inside, she pulled back behind the curtain and headed to her bedroom. She’d give him his privacy, and she’d pray for the Lord to show her how to reach him.
ELEVEN
The mouth-watering aroma of coffee brewing drew Callie from her dreams several hours later. She stretched and took a moment to remember where she was.
Christmas morning. Joy flooded her being. This was a day she’d expected to be so sad, but Jackson had changed that. He’d gone to so much effort. Thinking back to last night, she realized he’d done it at great personal cost. She blinked back tears of gratitude. Today she would find a way to make it up to him.
Rising with a heart full of anticipation, Callie sifted through her duffel looking for something appropriate to wear. There wasn’t much in the way of holiday clothing, but she dug out a green sweater to go with her flannel-lined jeans. The plaid lining was festive anyway. The red ribbon on her stuffed penguin’s neck caught her eye so she borrowed it to tie back her hair.
By the time Callie arrived in the kitchen, delicious food aromas mingled with the scent of freshly brewed coffee. She sniffed the air, then peeked under the skillet cover. “Bacon and pancakes? Jackson Walker, you are some kind of culinary superhero.” She reached up and kissed his cheek. “Merry Christmas.”
He smiled back at her, and there was almost no trace of the lonely man from last night. Shadows under his eyes reflected the loss of sleep, but those eyes were twinkling and his smile was happy. “One superhero-designed breakfast coming up.”
They ate in silence, each a little awkward after their near kiss the previous night. Finally Jackson made a suggestion. “How about getting outside today?”
“Hmm?”
He smiled softly. Callie’s coffee hadn’t kicked in yet.
“Forecast is for a beautiful day. We’ve been cooped up inside the car and here for days. How about we go skiing?”
Callie swallowed another sip of coffee. “You ski?”
“I have. You don’t spend time in Vermont without learning how. But I don’t mean downhill. Let’s grab some cross-country skis and go out and see the area.”
She set her coffee on the counter and sleepily rubbed her eyes. “Um, okay. I guess I could do that.”
“Where’s that Texas can-do attitude?”
“Still in bed.”
Jackson laughed. “You finish your coffee and have some breakfast. I’ll go down to the lodge and rent us some skis.” And check in with his office.
By the time he returned, she was dressed and ready to go. He gave her some extra layers he’d picked up in the ski shop but held back the information he’d also acquired. No need to start her Christmas day off badly with the news that the trial had been postponed a week.
Truth be told, the idea of spending an extra week holed away here with Callie scared him more than the thought of bringing her in for trial. They might be spending quite a bit of time outside to bolster his willpower. Thankfully backup would be arriving tomorrow. Keeping his distance would be easier with additional marshals in the house.
So today, he’d allow himself to enjoy her company—from a safe distance.
There might be something to that Texas bravado after all, Jackson decided as the day went on. Callie turned out to be a natural athlete with a terrific aptitude for skiing. They spent hours in the woods, skiing along paths and coasting over fresh snow. She seemed to thrive on the cold, fresh air and sunlight. Her cheeks were rosy and her eyes sparkling by the time he decided they should head back.
Her good humor proved infectious, and his own spirits were high, so he suggested they stop for a quick lunch at the lodge before heading back to their cabin.
Jackson suggested calling for a lodge shuttle as they finished the meal and left the lodge.
Callie objected. “I can’t believe I’m saying this after skiing all morning, but I’m stuffed. Can we walk a bit and then ski back?”
“Sure.” Jackson retrieved their skis from where he’d checked them at the door. Slinging them over his shoulder, he joined Callie. “Let’s go along the shore. The ice is frozen solid and we can actually walk on the lake.”
Jackson felt the vibration of his phone as they set off along the far shore. Looking at Callie’s happy face, not wanting to spoil her day, he let it go to voice mail.
“Jackson, look! That is so cool. What are they doing?”
Jackson looked up and grinned. “Those are ice boats. They’re sailing over the ice. It is pretty cool.”
“I so want to try that.”
She constantly amazed him. In the midst of all they were going through, she hadn’t lost her adventuresome spirit. “I’ll see what I can arrange.” While she was absorbed in watching the boats, he typed in his password and listened to his voice mail. He ground his teeth as the message sucked the joy from his day, especially when he thought of how his ne
ws was going to dampen Callie’s spirit. He had no choice but to tell her.
“Callie.”
She turned, and the look on her face told him she’d correctly read his expression. “They found us again, didn’t they?”
“I’m not sure. I asked an old friend to be on the lookout for anyone new in town who looked like they didn’t belong.”
“And?”
“She just left me a voice message. Men in a big black car. Nothing to indicate businessmen, and no sign of families.”
Callie bit her lip. He could see her fighting back tears. “They don’t sound like tourists.”
Jackson agreed. One of the reasons he’d decided to come here was knowing he could probably find people from his past who would serve as an early detection system. It sounded like the plan had worked.
“I don’t want to take the time to call her for details. Let’s continue back to the cabin—slowly and carefully—get what we need and get out of here.”
“Okay.” He saw the wistful expression she tried to hide, knew she was even more disappointed than he was that their time here had been cut short. And he hadn’t even told her about the trial postponement. Knowing the men had tracked them here made him even more curious about the cause of postponement. Were they planning something that required time to get to Callie? He was a professional, so the feeling he had in the pit of his stomach couldn’t be terror. But it sure felt like it.
Knowing they’d be sitting ducks walking along the lakeshore, Jackson drew Callie into the shelter of the trees. “We need to hike back through the forest. I don’t want to risk being out in the open.”
The closer they got to the cabin, the more carefully Jackson proceeded. “Let’s go around from behind, just to make sure. There’s a hill that overlooks the cabin. We’ll be able to see from there.”
“How do you know all this?”
“I scoped it out the day after we arrived. Doesn’t pay to get caught unawares.”
They cautiously made their way up the hill, ducking from tree to tree. Jackson reached the top first. As she came up behind him, he grabbed her arm and pulled her under the full branches of a tall fir tree.
She looked up at him, eyes wide with fright. “They’re there?”
He nodded. “There’s a car parked by the road. Three men are circling the cabin.” He decided not to mention the guns. Anger tugged at his gut. “They should not have found us. No one knew we were here.” Except the people in his office. And Callie.
Callie started to say something, so he laid a finger on her lips. “Shh.” He whispered in her ear. “Sound carries far.”
He kept her pressed close against him, offering a comfort he was far from feeling. “Do you have anything in that cabin that you can’t live without?”
Callie started to shake her head. “Well, my Bible.” She mouthed the words so they were barely audible. “But I can get another if we can’t get that one back. Everything else that really matters is in my backpack.” She indicated the bag slung over her shoulders.
“You have your wallet, ID?” he pressed.
“I’ve learned to go nowhere without them.”
“Good.” He nodded his approval. “Now, how are you feeling about those skis?”
She eyed him quizzically. “That would matter now because...?”
“We’re going to ski out of here.”
“You’re kidding me,” Callie whispered. “No, you’re not. Why?”
“They have the road blocked. See that glint off to the right?”
She looked hard, squinting against the sun. “You mean over beyond those trees?”
“Yes. That’s the road. See those men pacing along the road? They’re not the snow-removal crew.”
Callie sank down against the tree trunk. “I wish it had never stopped snowing.”
The look she turned on him tore at his heart. “Why do they want me so badly, Jackson?” she whispered. “What don’t I understand about this?”
He didn’t want to waste any time, but she needed emotional strength if she was going to make it through the journey ahead. He sank beside her in the snow, grateful for the ski pants that protected them from the cold and wetness. “I got an email from John Logan this morning. It said the trial has been postponed a week. He didn’t say why. From the manpower they’ve sent here, I’m guessing your testimony is all that’s holding the case against them together.”
Tears sparkled on her lashes as she bravely fought them back. “I want this over with. They need to pay.” She closed her eyes, and from the look on her face, Jackson suspected she was talking to God again. When she opened her eyes, her strength was back. It was amazing, really, how she drew such power from prayer.
“Let’s do this. How are we getting out of here?”
“If we can ski back over those hills without them seeing us, we can make it through and out the other side and grab a car there.”
“Okay.”
Jackson knew she must be exhausted from the morning, but she gamely strapped her skis back on and ducked out behind the tree. “Lead on.”
He grinned at her and dropped a swift kiss on her head. “You’re a real trouper, Callie Martin. After me.”
A small animal, startled by their sudden movement, crackled through the underbrush. The sound was like shotguns going off and Jackson knew they were in trouble. He paused to look long enough to see one man point toward them and another raise his rifle. “Duck, Callie.”
The shot fell far short, but he knew they might not be so fortunate next time. Engines revved behind him. “Through the trees, Callie. We need to go some way they can’t follow in the cars.”
He was grateful for her athletic skills as they made a daring run through some pretty rough terrain straight into the heart of the woods. Jackson had no clue where they were, but he figured that was a good thing. If he didn’t, hopefully the men after them didn’t either.
* * *
After a half hour of straight-out skiing, Jackson called to her to stop. Callie gratefully drew to a halt.
“Are you okay?”
If she was honest, no. Her toes were numb, her face nearly frostbitten and her fingers totally cramped from her death grip on the ski poles. “Fine. Why did we stop?”
Jackson reached into his zippered pocket and pulled out his phone. “I need the GPS to tell me where we are.”
He studied the coordinates while Callie drew in deep breaths and tried to knead some feeling back into her fingers.
“Looks like there’s a small town over that ridge,” Jackson said. “Do you think you can make it that far?”
She’d be going on sheer grit and determination, but there was no way she was giving up now. She nodded.
Another hour of icy torment brought them close to the edges of the town. Dusk wasn’t far off and Callie felt a huge wave of relief at the sight of houses with lights. There was a limit to how far even grit could take you.”
Apparently cars could travel faster. “Jackson.” Callie wanted to cry. “Look.”
Parked right in the middle of the main street was the same black car they’d been warned about. If it hadn’t been distinguishable by how out of place it was, the men in black parkas toting guns were a pretty good giveaway. She sank to the ground before her legs could give out on her.
“Jackson, I want to keep going.” She gasped, her breath condensing in a cloud in front of her face. “But I don’t think I can. I don’t want them to catch you because I can’t keep up.”
Jackson crouched down beside her and took her face in his hands. “Let’s get one thing clear—I’m going nowhere without you. Keeping you alive is my sole purpose in life at the moment. I’m not abandoning you.”
“But—”
“There are no buts.” He cut her off with a quick kiss. “Just si
t here behind this garage while I look around.” And then he set off to assess the situation.
He’d kissed her. For the second time in less than twenty-four hours, Jackson had shown feelings for her. But this was different than last night’s almost kiss. This had been Jackson in a ferociously protective mode. Her lips tingled in a way that had nothing to do with cold. It was more like warmth flooding back into frozen fingers and toes. It might hurt, but it was a sure sign of life. Jackson made her feel alive in a way she never had before.
She waited for what felt like so long a time that she was worried something had happened to him. When he finally appeared around the side of the building, she couldn’t contain the smile that burst across her face.
“I found us some transportation.”
He stretched out a hand to help her up. Her cramped legs protested, but she stomped her feet a few times and got the feeling flowing again. What she wouldn’t give for a warm fire and a hot drink.
“We have to walk through yards. But watch out at the fifth house. They let the dog out before so I had to circle around. That’s what took so long.” He dipped his head and smiled at her. “Sorry if you were worried.”
They emerged at the end of the street and Callie’s spirits took a nosedive. “A snowmobile?” Here she’d been envisioning heat and an interior.
“I’m sorry.” Jackson rested his arm on her shoulders and gave her a hug. “I know you must be exhausted, but we have to get some distance between us and get to somewhere we can rent a car. I borrowed it from a really nice family.”
She wanted to be positive, but the cumulative effect of everything was hitting hard right now. “Jackson, be honest. There’s nothing we can do, is there? No matter where we go, somehow they find us.”
“There has to be a reason why. Once I figure what that is, we’ll be fine. For now, let’s just get out of here before they start searching the town.”
He handed her a pair of goggles and a helmet, and helped her onto the snowmobile. He donned his own gear, settled in front of her and told her to hold on tight. They started off slowly, heading up the back street to avoid detection. Jackson turned a corner and nearly swerved off the road when he saw the black car blocking the road. “Hang on, Callie.”