by Eileen Green
Another gust of wind sent the bird careening forward and into the slope, the blades digging into snow, spewing it toward Jake. The engines were cut but it always took a few minutes for the blades to completely stop, he had to hope that they didn’t start a fire. The copter hit the mountain and then flipped from the force of the moving blades. The hunk of red and white metal was now facing Jake but was now no longer moving as if it was trying to fly, but it was rocking.
Actually, Jake realized the mountain was moving and not the bird. Shit!
Rushing, he dragged the second space blanket over him, dropped down next to Lily and held onto both of them, hoping for the best. When the rumbling got worse and cold bore down on his back, he thought of Gwen. He couldn’t lose her so soon. What would she do without him? Andrew would have to step up and take care of her. He could do it, of that Jake was certain.
I love you, Gwen.
Chapter Seventeen
Huddled up under blankets that Connor kept in his vehicle, Gwen and Heather were trying to stay warm in said vehicle. Unfortunately, the thought of Jake out there in the storm on a snow-covered mountain did little to help keep Gwen warm.
They had been gone from the diner for about four hours now, but it seemed like a lifetime ago. The man in charge was being obstinate, saying they were not sending anyone out in the storm, but all the men in their little circle, led by Andrew, were pressuring him. When Gwen had overheard him say that, she turned hot with anger and began to yell at him, and that’s why she was now sitting in Connor’s SUV. Banished for fighting for the life of her man.
A tent had been set up as command central for the search and rescue but the wind had whipped it around so much it wouldn’t stay on the poles. Since the Circle G ranch was close, Austin and Dave had gone back and brought back a camping trailer to use instead. Martha, the Goodall’s housekeeper, had come along to lend moral support and provide a never-ending pot of coffee.
Although Gwen could have stayed in the trailer, the close proximity to the incident commander was dangerous for not only Gwen, but for the man himself. Connor had brought the two ladies a thermos of hot coffee along with cups and some sandwiches Martha had put together.
“This should help keep you two warm,” he said as he climbed in the backseat. “Go ahead and run the engine for heat also. Storm said we can siphon gas from one of the other vehicles if we need to.”
“Thank you, Connor. I appreciate it.” Gwen knew her voice sounded small. The weight of worry was heavy upon her and she felt as if part of her was slipping away with each passing minute. Turning to face him, she gave a slight smile. “I’m sorry I lost it.”
His freckled hand came forward and patted her arm that was resting on the back of the front seat. “Believe me, Gwen. If you hadn’t gone off on him, I’m sure Andrew would have, or one of us. It’s quite understandable. My Gina would have done the same thing.”
“Were they able to raise the helicopter on the radio at all?” Heather asked, turning to face him also.
“No, but three PLBs are sounding from the mountain. They’ve all been activated.” Connor spoke as if they knew what he was talking about. When he realized they were both staring at him, clueless, he continued. “Sorry. PLB is personal location beacon. They have to be activated by the person wearing them, most likely at the time everything went south. That’s a good sign, Gwen.”
Gwen’s eyes traveled to the command trailer. Four young men had just stepped out of the trailer, Styrofoam cups in their hands. They looked as defeated as she felt. From what she understood, they were the ones on the mountain with their friend when this entire disaster began.
Their friend had wanted to learn how to snowboard, had said it was for research. After letting her practice on the lower slopes, they finally moved up the slope on foot. About halfway up, they took off downhill. Lily, that’s what they said her name was, was keeping up with them for a few minutes and then began to fall behind.
A startling thunderous crack sounded drawing their attention behind them. Lily was a couple hundred yards behind them, and behind her, the slope was moving down on them. All they could do was hope for the best as they sped downhill, racing the inundation that threatened their lives. By the time they got to the bottom, the snow had stopped moving, but Lily was nowhere in sight.
Knowing the mountain was unstable, they called 911, hoping against hope that she was all right. When the A.L.E.R.T. helicopter appeared, their hopes were raised. Watching the copter move meticulously over the entire area was a tedious job, but they had waited anxiously. Patiently they watched as someone was lowered to the ground, waiting for them to ascend with Lily, but it didn’t happen. Then, they watched in disbelief as the copter waivered in the wind and then hit the slope.
When Gwen, Connor, Jared, and Heather had arrived, the guys from the Circle G were already there. Lyndee had come with them while Angela stayed home with Anita and the boys. This was no place for a pregnant woman and kids.
Lyndee and Lawrence had caught the newly arrived group up on what had happened as the young men had already given their version of the incident and Lyndee felt they didn’t need to repeat it. Lyndee held Gwen as she tried to comfort her. She had never had close friends that she could depend on in a crunch so she was thankful for all of them being there for her.
Gwen could sympathize with the four young men, but then again, if they hadn’t been on the wrong side of the mountain, none of this would have happened. Of course, the belief that everything happens for a reason skipped haphazardly through her brain, but it was difficult to believe that when facing circumstances such as this.
The back door opened again and Andrew climbed in, bringing in a rush of cold air. “Hey, baby. How are you holding up?”
Shrugging, she tried to brush it off. She couldn’t count how many times someone had asked her that already, but then, this time it was one of the men she loved. “Okay, I guess.”
“We’re going to bring him home,” Andrew said, his hand coming up to caress her arm. “You just need to stay strong. You are our heart and we are going to have a long life ahead of us.”
Blinking back the tears that threatened to fall, she looked into his blue eyes. They were sincere and loving, holding her gaze as if he was holding her body. She could lose herself in their depths.
“We’re all here for you, Gwen. We’ve all been through a lot in the past six months and we’re all better for it. I know that doesn’t make sense right now, but trust me, you guys are going to get through this.” Connor’s optimism helped boost Gwen’s confidence in the situation at hand.
Multiple sets of headlights bombarded the clearing where the center had been set up. A state highway patrol SUV pulled up next to Connor’s truck while a pickup pulled up next to that and another five more pulled in behind all of the vehicles. Doors opened as men in heavy winter clothing bailed out of the vehicles and made their way over to the trailer. Someone from the trailer pointed over to the pickup Gwen was sitting in and the group headed in their direction.
Andrew opened the door and Gwen noticed the new arrivals included Ray, Brian, and Siobhan. Five of the guys Gwen had recognized from the Tipsy Tavern.
Siobhan made her way around the SUV and opened the driver’s side door. Gwen slid over on the bench seat so that she was now in the middle and before she knew it, Siobhan threw her arms around her. “Oh, honey. We got here as soon as we could close up the bar. How are you holdin’ up?”
Cold air permeated the interior but the warmth of emotions that surrounded her was comforting. “I’m doing okay. I know he’s alive. I feel it in my heart. But I’ve been where he is. I’ve been so cold that it feels like your body is slowly going to sleep. You can’t get warm no matter what you think about. Your mind starts to go fuzzy, like it’s turning to slush in your head.” A sob escaped her, before she continued. “I just hope he’s warmer than what I was when I was trapped in that shed.”
Knowing the circumstances were night and day wasn’t comforting
. She was in a building, albeit an unsealed building, but at least it was a cover. Jake was most likely buried in the snow, exposed and alone.
Siobhan and Heather both held her as the men began talk behind them. Gwen heard one man say they had brought plenty of rope and flashlights, not sure where that was going to lead them, but then Connor and Andrew got out and closed the door. Ray and Brian had come around to the driver’s side door and Siobhan pulled away from her for a moment.
“You stay here with Gwen. Stay warm for us, all right, darlin’?” Ray’s voice was commanding as he gave instructions to the Irish beauty.
Gwen glanced up to see Ray kiss his woman and then step aside. Brian, a commanding presence in his own right in his uniform, stepped forward and locked lips with Siobhan. He was harsh, but gentle in the same moment. Yes, he was definitely a Dom.
Stealing a glance over at her daughter, she found amusement on her face and a touch of envy. Sending a scowl her way, Gwen hoped her daughter wouldn’t get involved with any man until she got out of school, but unfortunately, a mother couldn’t deny a young woman’s desires. She was living proof of that.
Siobhan shifted again and the door closed, the wind no longer blowing in on them. Gwen reached over and turned the heater up as the cold was seeping into her bones. Pulling the blanket closer in around her, both of the other ladies snuggled in closer, lending their body heat and their silent support.
This was all they could do for now. Wait, pray, and support each other. Gwen knew if Lyndee wasn’t in among the fray of rescue workers, she would be here now also.
For several minutes the heater and the wind howling were the only sounds heard in the SUV, but then the three women’s attention was drawn to the trailer where the door was open and shouting could be heard. Shadows moved willy-nilly inside the trailer and then men began to pour out of the door.
The lights of several more vehicles pulled up further behind the others and more men got out from them and headed for the group standing outside the trailer. From what Gwen could tell, more rope was being passed from the newcomers along with flashlights. She thought she recognized some of the men as being from the fire station Jake and Andrew worked out of.
Martha stood in the doorway and handed out what looked like thermos to several of the men, who tucked them into backpacks. The group stood around talking animatedly for several more minutes before they began to head toward the slope of the mountain.
Panic clutched at Gwen’s chest as she saw Andrew with the group. She couldn’t let him go! She couldn’t risk possibly losing him also. Trying to scramble out of the blanket that she was sitting under, two sets of hands pressed her back against the seat.
“No, Mom. You are not going out there. Andrew knows what he’s doing. Let him do his job so he can bring Jake home.” Heather’s voice was calm but stern.
Gwen chanced a glance at Siobhan. The woman wore the same look as Heather did and Gwen knew she wouldn’t be getting out of the SUV until the men returned.
She only watched as the shadows of the group disappeared into the darkness and the whirling snow began to fall.
* * * *
Andrew’s blood was boiling when the man in command had reiterated that they would have to wait until morning. He wasn’t chancing losing any more men on the mountain. Understanding the reasoning from a responder’s point of view, he would normally agree. As a friend and partner in a ménage relationship, he wasn’t going to sit around and wait. He had a woman to answer to should anything happen to Jake.
Commander Jacobson of the Kalispell fire department was sympathetic. The men on the mountain were ones he was responsible for, but Andrew knew he just didn’t want to put anyone else in jeopardy, especially volunteers.
As the argument began to turn heated between the four different departments of emergency services, Lyndee and Lawrence stepped forward. True, the Lake County Sheriff’s Department really didn’t have much ground to stand on, and Jacobson knew that, but his eyes nearly bugged out of his head when the two feds pulled out their badges and commandeered the operation.
Lyndee seemed to be just as angry as the rest of them. Her face was red and her breathing labored as she stood up to the six foot man. “I understand you wanting to protect your men and these others that have come out to help, but as you can see, they have come to find their friends. So, we are going to let them go. The sooner they get up there, the sooner we can bring those men and that woman home.”
“They will rope themselves together, in four foot increments. That way, they will all stay together and be able to search a wide area at a time.” Lawrence had taken over. His blond surfer looks was a bit out of place here on the mountain, but his amber-colored eyes seemed to intimidate Jacobson, as did his overall presence. “If you wish, we can waste more time and we get our boss on the phone, or we can let them get out there and bring back your men.”
Commander Jacobson held up his hands in defeat. He most likely knew that these men would go with or without his go ahead. At least, if he was in on the planning and process of the search, he would still look good in the long run. “Okay. I understand you wanting to get out there to help your friends. I have to let you know, if anything happens to you on the mountain, I won’t be able to get anyone out to help until tomorrow. Understood?”
Everyone nodded their understanding. Handing handhelds out to half the group, they would be able to stay in radio contact with every other man on the line.
After leaving the trailer, which had grown claustrophobic with so many big men inside, Andrew was thankful for some space. Also, other people had arrived in the form of off-duty firefighters from his station and others. They had come with rope and flashlights, dressed to try to endure the weather on the mountain.
Avoiding a glance at Connor’s Tahoe, he tied rope around his waist. He didn’t want to see Gwen’s panicked face once she realized he was going out to search for Jake. This had to be done in order to keep the family they longed for intact and to bring the other three down to their families also.
He was surprised when the four young men who had begun this whole ordeal began tying themselves to the line at the end of the group. He was proud of them. Even though they had done something wrong, they were willing to step up to the plate and help out in the emergency.
Martha had handed out thermoses of hot coffee to help them out up on the slope as they were ready to leave. Switching on the flashlights, some of them small, some of them more like beams, they headed off into the wind, snow, and the unforgiving darkness of the mountain.
* * * *
Boredom blanketed the three women inside the Tahoe as much as the snow blanketed the exterior. Heather had been reading a book on her phone while Siobhan was leafing through a magazine she had brought. She had actually grabbed the stack of them that were in the break room so that they’d have something to look at.
Gwen stared through the windshield. The whirling snow had become mesmerizing, her eyes nearly going cross eyed. Both of the younger women had tried to interest her in occupying her mind, but she refused. Focusing on anything but the men on the mountain escaped her.
Letting her mind wander, she thought back to the first day she had seen Jake and Andrew.
It was the day after she had been rescued from the shed Virgil Cantrell had hidden her in along with James, one of Anita’s men. They had been left there to die along with the corpses of two of Cantrell’s henchmen.
Gwen vaguely remembered being rescued. Numbness filled her brain while icy pinpricks stabbed at her body, inside and out. Gentle hands touched her, held her, moved her. Voices soothed her although they sounded so far away. They coaxed her to stay with them. They assured her she was going to be all right.
She held onto those voices and words. Belief that she would be all right filled her while she wanted to stay with the voices.
The next day, she awoke in the hospital, surprised that she had actually made it through the harrowing ordeal. Grogginess consumed her even through the
battery of tests she had to endure. At one point in the afternoon, she opened her eyes, not realizing she had dozed off, and found two gorgeous men standing at the foot of her bed. Wearing uniforms fitting their status with the fire department, they looked like sex on a stick with muscles filling out the clothing in all the right places.
Warmth seeped into her still-cold body. Hell, they didn’t need to cover her with multiple blankets. All they had to do was set these two men in her line of sight and her blood would warm her up.
Even though they were only separated by a few inches and their bodies were equally muscular, the men were opposites. One was dark headed with a youthful air to him along with a bit of playfulness, while the blond seemed a bit more serious in his demeanor. The contrast was interesting and she found she had the urge to want to explore it.
Each man held a glass vase which contained a single rose. The dark-headed man held a vibrant yellow bud, while the blond held a lovely shade of pink bud. They even chose contrasting colors in flowers.
Pushing a button on the bed’s control box, Gwen lifted her torso up further until she was nearly sitting straight up. As she did so, the men moved, one to each side. The blond pulled the rolling table over so it sat partially over her legs before handing her the bud vase.
“Hello. My name is Jake Ramsey. You probably don’t remember me, but I was one of the men who helped rescue you last night.” Jake smiled as he spoke, his full lips pulling back over white, even teeth. He was handsome without smiling, but he was magnificent when he did.
“I’m Andrew Collins,” the dark-headed one said, nearly thrusting the vase at her in his exuberance. “I was with Jake last night also. I’m glad to see you are doing better.”