by Nikki Wild
And yet, even with his threat hanging above my head, I still didn’t want to let her go. The thought of Sarah with another guy made me sick, even more so than the thought of my father finding out about us.
As the liquor hit my stomach, liquid fire worked its way through my veins. What the hell did it matter what Dad thought? I was an adult now and so was Sarah. What was the worst he could do? Write me out of his will?
I’d started investing the moment I turned eighteen, turning the inheritance my grandfather had left me into a small fortune in its own right. Even if Dad tossed me out and never gave me another dime, I still had more than enough money to live on without his help.
So it wasn’t like I had to worry about relying on him to live. I could easily find a new house and afford to take care of myself, even if it wasn’t necessarily something I wanted to do. Not like that, anyway.
I was close with Dad and didn’t want to ruin my relationship with him. But, more than that, I didn’t want to ruin what I had with Sarah. I didn’t want to push her away and make her feel like she was just some cheap girl I picked up for a weekend of fucking.
She was more than that to me. Even now, I was considering risking everything for her. Even if I had enough money, that recording could still cost me quite a bit. Not many people would want to do business with a guy who fucked his own sister, even if she was only my step-sister.
But she was worth it, I decided as I downed the last of my drink.
Sarah was worth everything I had and more. Now I just needed to tell her that and hope to god she wasn’t still pissed at me for this morning. I paid off my tab and headed back to the room, determined to make things right with Sarah.
When I went to the room though, Sarah was gone. I frowned as I looked around the empty room, wondering where she’d disappeared to. Then I noticed a paper on the table, which I snatched up, frowning as I read it.
“If you can’t even talk to me, then I guess we’re done. I’m not going to be your weekend entertainment. You can find some other girl to fuck for the rest of the trip.”
Fucking hell!
She must’ve thought because I’d gone down to the bar for a drink that I didn’t want her. Fucking hell. Why hadn’t I gotten my head out of my ass sooner? Why hadn’t I just told her what I was feeling?
I slammed the note back onto the desk as I cursed under my breath. Where the hell could she have gone? Had she gone to Kelly’s room? That would be the most obvious place for her to hideout if she was avoiding me.
Heading back down the hall, I went to Kelly’s room, pounding on the door. I shifted from foot to foot as I waited for someone to answer the door. It seemed to take forever before Kelly appeared. She blinked at me, obviously confused at why I was there.
“Have you seen Sarah? She left while I was out, and I can’t find her.”
“Yeah, I saw her not long ago, down in the lobby.” Kelly covered a yawn. “Seemed like she was upset over something, but she didn’t want to talk about it. I was exhausted, so I came back up to take a nap, but she went out to the slopes with one of your friends. He said something about fresh powder.”
I sighed, cursing at myself mentally. “Do you remember who she was with?”
“Billy, I think his name was. The one who face planted in the snow the other day? Him.”
“Damn! Sorry, I mean thanks for letting me know. Get some rest okay?”
Before she could respond, I was heading down the hall. I stopped by my room and threw on my snow gear and grabbed my board before practically running out of the lodge. The moment I was outside, I saw what Billy had meant by fresh powder. The storm had broken sometime in the night, leaving the ground glistening with fresh snow.
But when I reached the ski-lift, my heart sunk. It wasn’t moving, despite the lights all still being on. So that meant it wasn’t a power issue. I headed over to the little booth where a man stood. He turned as I approached, an apologetic smile on his face.
“I’m sorry sir, no one else can go up right now. The last riders went up ten minutes ago.”
“What’s going on? Why isn’t the lift running?” I leaned against my board, frowning at him.
“There was an avalanche on the next ridge over. Nothing major, we just had to shut down as a precaution, to check the snow pack and keep people off the backcountry, that’s all.”
“My sister and a friend are up there!” I shouted. “You need to turn the lift back on so I can make sure they’re okay!”
The man shook his head, his smile turning into a frown. “I can’t do that, sir. I’m sure your sister and friend are just fine. Ski patrol is already up there making sure all of the riders get down safely. Don’t worry.”
Fucking Hell!
Billy loves the backcountry. Every time we’d come up here before, he’d gotten tired of the main slopes quickly. It was one of the reasons he wasn’t thrilled with coming here instead of some of the other resorts. If it was just him and Sarah, he was bound to take her off the main slope, even if she was still a relative beginner.
I clenched my fists and ground my teeth, trying to figure out how to get to them, how to make sure she was okay. I couldn’t walk up the mountain. That would take way too long.
Then I spotted the bright red ski patrol snowmobile parked next to the ski lift, the sunlight reflecting off the keys. I frowned as I stared at it, but no other option came to mind. Dropping my snowboard, I ran over to it and hopped on. As the lift owned yelled at me, I cranked the engine and took off up the mountain, the stubby man trying to chase after me for a few feet before giving up and running back to his little shack.
Skiers passed me by as I drove up the mountain, but none of them wore the bright pink gear Sarah did. For once, I was glad she’d chosen the most outlandish outfit she could find, since it would make her easier to spot
But by the time I made it up to the lodge at the top, I still hadn’t spotted Sarah or Billy. Fucking hell, they really had gone off trail. I was going to kick Billy’s ass when I found him. He should’ve known better than to take a beginner off the main trails.
When I pulled up next to the small building, a ski patrolman stood there, arms crossed over his chest as he glared at me. My face flushed but there was no way I was going to be apologetic for being worried about Sarah, especially since now I definitely knew they were somewhere on the backcountry.
The man stalked over as I pulled to a stop. He had a walkie-talkie in his hand, which explained how he’d known I was on my way up. “What the hell were you thinking?”
“Look, my sister is missing. I think she may have gone off-trail with another guy.”
The man nodded. “A couple went off trail not long ago. We’ve got people out looking for them. Now get off the snowmobile and let us do our jobs.”
I opened my mouth to reply, only to be interrupted by a rumbling sound. A sound I knew all too well. Both the patrolman and I turned just in time to see the wave of snow cascading down another one of the ridges, right by where they’d have been if they went off trail.
“Get on!” I yelled to him, cranking the engine again.
The guy didn’t argue, just hopped on back. The moment he was seat, I hit the gas and we were off in the direction of the avalanche. The entire time, I kept looking for something, some sign of where she’d gone. Something that would at least give me a clue.
“There!” the patrolman shouted, pointing to the right.
I couldn’t tell when he was pointing at, but I turned the snowmobile that way anyway. As we got closer, I saw the tracks – a snowboard and a set of skis. That was most likely Sarah and Billy, if I had to take a guess.
The tracks went toward where the avalanche had just hit, disappearing beneath the snow. My heart pounded as I followed the tracks as best I could, hoping we’d find them soon. I slowed the snowmobile down as my head was on a constant swivel, looking for tracks or anything that might help.
“Over there! I see someone!”
I looked where he pointed.
Squinting, I could just make out a mark of red or pink sticking out from beneath the snow. I gunned it again, coming to a stop a few feet away. Immediately, the two of us jumped off and ran towards what I could now tell was a glove.
We started digging, pushing the snow out of the way. Moments later, Billy’s rose out of the snow, panting and gasping for air. I cursed as the patrolman and I lifted him out.
“Where the hell is she?” I shouted. “Where’s Sarah? God damn it, where is she?!”
Billy coughed and shook his head, then pointed to his right. “She was a few feet next to me.”
Leaving Billy in the care of the patrolman, I started searching, digging around in the snow every few feet. Finally, I found one of her ski poles, and I started digging in that area, yelling her name the entire time. When I finally found her, she was completely buried beneath the snow.
“I need some help!” I shouted, digging without even looking back to see if anyone had heard me. But, seconds later, the patrolman was next to me again, helping me uncover Sarah. When we finally pulled her out, she wasn’t breathing.
The man pulled open her jacket, leaning down to press his ear to hear chest. “She’s still got a heartbeat!”
I pushed him out of the way and straddled her hips, performing CPR. It’d been many years since I’d practiced, but I still remembered the lessons from my Boy Scout days as if they’d been just last week. My own heartbeat rose with each passing second, my body beginning to shake.
“Come on, Sarah,” I said as I pressed down on her chest before leaning over to push more air into her lungs. “Come on. You can do it.”
Time stood still as I continued performing CRP on Sarah. All I could do was think of the things I wished I’d said to her back in the room. All the things I wanted to tell her now.
Her body arched as she sucked in a gasp of her, choking and sputtering as she did so. She still didn’t open her eyes, but she was breathing now, which was definitely a good sign.
“Oh thank god!” I lifted her gently and hugged her tight, not wanting to ever let go with her.
The patrolman said something into his walkie-talkie. I was too busy crying to pay much attention to what he said until he placed a hand on my shoulder. “Take her down the mountain. They’ve got an infirmary set up down at the lodge. I’ll wait here with the other one until someone else can get up here to bring him back down.”
I nodded, carrying Sarah over to the snowmobile, being careful not to jostle her too much. My heart still pounded, threatening to leap from my chest and make its way down the mountain without me. Luckily the snowmobile had straps to hold her in, else she’d have probably fallen right out.
“They’ll be waiting for you when you get down there. Just take it easy and try not to hit too many bumps.” Even the patrolman looked panicked and worried, which just made me feel even worse.
I patted him on the shoulder and smiled, glad for his help. Even though I was sure I wasn’t his favorite person in the world right then, he’d done his best to help me find Sarah. For that, I would be eternally grateful. “Thank you so much.”
He nodded. “Just be careful.
Once I was sure Sarah was secure and not going anywhere, I hopped back onto the snowmobile and made my way back down the mountain. The trip down took much longer than the one up, since I had to be careful with Sarah on the back.
I was halfway down when two ski patrol snowmobiles zipped by my, heading in the direction I’d just come from. At least they wouldn’t have to wait up there too long, though I wouldn’t have minded if Billy had been left up there for the rest of the day.
The fucker deserved it for almost getting my sister killed.
Like the patrolman had said, they were waiting for me when I pulled up in front of the lodge. Two medics rushed over when I came to a stop and immediately began loading Sarah onto a stretcher.
I jumped off, waiting to help if they needed it. But the two loaded her with easy, as if they’d done this a million times. Even as we walked, they were taking her vitals, checking her breathing and heartbeat.
“Is she going to be okay?” I asked, following them into the lodge. Part of the lobby was cordoned off for a small infirmary, white cloth blocking the inside from view.
“We’re not sure yet.” When I tried to follow him into the tent, he put a hand on my chest to stop me. “we’ll let you know as soon as we know something. You need to wait out here.”
Before I could open my mouth to respond, Craig was at my side, pulling me to a group of chairs and couches where most of the guys sat. I hadn’t even noticed them when I’d walked in, nor the group of onlookers that had gathered in the lobby to see what was going on. “Come on, man. Let the medics to do their job. Okay?”
Numbly, I nodded. She’d started breathing again. That had to be a good sign right? That had to mean she was going to be okay. I tried to focus on that, tried to focus on all the good outcomes. She hadn’t been under the snow all that long, so chances were, she would be just fine, I told myself.
What the hell was I going to do if something happened to her?
I’d only just gotten to know her. Even though we’d lived together for the past few years, it wasn’t until this week that I really began to pay attention to her. We’d been friendly, sure, but we’d always pretty much existed separately, only coming together when we had to.
Now though… I couldn’t imagine life without Sarah at my side any more. I didn’t care what my father or Craig or Billy or anyone else thought. I loved Sarah and would do anything I could to be with her for as long as possible.
Even if that meant moving across country. Even if that meant giving up everything and starting over from scratch. If it meant I’d have Sarah by my side, then I would do it all without a second thought.
Craig tried to get me to sit, but all I could do was pace. Once again, I felt useless, helpless. I hated not being in there with her, at the very least holding her hand and letting her know she wasn’t alone. Yet, all I could do was stand out here and wait.
When the lodge doors opened and Billy walked through them, everything inside me boiled up at once. This was all his fucking fault, yet he was fine, like nothing had even happened, while Sarah was in there fighting for her life.
I stalked over to him, my hands balling into fists. When I approached, he opened his mouth to speak just as I swung my first, hitting him in the side of the head and knocking him to the ground. Before I could do anything else though, Craig was there, grabbing my arm.
“Chill dude,” he whispered into my ear. “This isn’t going to help anything.”
Despite Craig’s words, anger still flooded through my veins. I glared down at Billy, wanting to pummel him into oblivion. It was only due to Craig holding my arm that I didn’t.
“This is your fucking fault!” I shouted at him, unable to hold back. “It’s because you she’s in there. What the fuck were you thinking, taking her out on the backcountry like that? Even if there hadn’t been an avalanche, you knew she was a beginner! She never should’ve been out there!”
Billy flinched, holding a hand to his face where I’d struck him. “Look, I’m sorry man. I know it was stupid. I wasn’t thinking okay? I didn’t mean for this to happen.”
I glared at him, not yet ready to accept his apology, by my anger had subsided enough that I no longer felt the urge to pummel him until his was as red as his jacket. Craig seemed to sense this and released my arm, taking a step back.
Still though, I didn’t want him near Sarah. I didn’t even want him to look at her, much less speak to her. Not only had he nearly gotten her fucking killed, but he’d thought it was a great idea to go out on the slopes with her only minutes after he’d tried to fucking blackmail me.
Fucking asshole.
“Stay away from her, okay? I don’t want you going anywhere near Sarah ever again, do you understand?”
Billy nodded, frowning down at the grounded. Then he looked up again, his gaze darting from me, to Craig, to the
rest of the guys. “Look… Can I talk to you in private for a moment?”
I frowned, but nodded, not quite sure I wanted to hear what he had to say. But at least in private, if he said something I didn’t like, I was free to knock his head off without Craig standing there to stop me.
Craig patted me on the back. “I’ll be over with the guys.” He glanced over at Billy and frowned. “Try not to kill him, okay? I don’t feel like explaining to your old man why you’re in jail.”
I snorted. Jail was the least of my concerns right now, but I nodded anyway. If I was in jail, I wouldn’t be able to be there for Sarah, which meant, at the very least, I wouldn’t kill him today. Maybe bloody him a bit, but he’d be able to stumble back to his room after.
Billy lead me over to a corner, away from all the people, but still in full view of where the guys sat. Probably an insurance policy, I figured, just in case I decided killing him was a good idea.
“Look…. About this morning. I’m really sorry. What I said was stupid. I was angry and wasn’t thinking.” He ran a hand through his hair. “When we were out there? All she could do was talk about you. Yeah, she was pissed at you for something, but she still couldn’t stop talking about you.”
Blinking, I stood there, shocked. I’d expected she wouldn’t have wanted to even hear my name after this morning. Yet she’d talked about me the entire time? My heart swelled and I fought back a grin. That meant there was still hope for us.
That meant maybe she’d forgive me for being such an ass.
“I’ll delete the recording, I promise. And I won’t say anything to your father or anyone, okay?”
Nodding, I stuffed my hands into my pockets. “I still don’t want you around Sarah, okay? If she ever found out what you tried to pull, she’d kill you herself, understand? So go back to your room and don’t bother us for the rest of the trip.”
“Okay, I guess that’s fare.” He smiled sadly, then shuffled off toward his room.