Page 2 of Deadly Peril

On the way to the front door, Jana grabbed her parka from the closet. She got her boots on just as the honk sounded. Her skis were in the enclosed porch. She lifted them into her arms and waved to her friend.

Nicole Bennett was Jana’s BFF. She’d lived nearby since childhood and had been a competitor in the biathlon. Even though she was married and worked in a medical office during the week, it was like they were joined at the hip.

She knew everything about Jana’s life, and vice versa. Jana put her skis over her shoulder and headed for the red Jeep. “Hey, Coley.”

Her friend got out to help secure the skis, then hopped back into the driver’s seat. Jana slid into the passenger side. “It’s supposed to snow again.”

“Yep, it might snow while we’re on the mountain,” Coley said, then glanced at Jana. “You look tired. What’s up?” She headed toward the road in the direction of Royal Gorge.

“You too?” Jana huffed. “Why is everybody on my case?”

“By everybody, I assume you mean Eva?”

“Well, for one. But I don’t look that tired.”

“Actually, you do. But the goggles will cover it up.”

“Gee, thanks.”

“Eva can’t help herself. You are her granddaughter, and she adores you. There are worse things.”

Jana raised her hand. “Okay, but I’m not a child anymore. I’ve been to college. I’ve been married and divorced. I’m thirty years old, for Christ’s sake.”

Coley giggled.

“You can laugh. You aren’t the one that has to deal with it.”

“Okay…okay,” Coley said, then turned on the radio. “But really…what’s keeping you awake?”

“I think you know.”

“Did you get another letter?”

Jana nodded.

“That’s too weird.” Coley twirled a strand of her hair. “I can’t figure it out.”

“There are strange people in this world. What else can I say?”

“Strange people who get their jollies from scaring young women?”

Jana just looked at her.

“All right…point made.” Coley focused on the road. “Let’s ski and forget about all this other stuff. It’s stressful.”

Jana laughed. “A good hard run in the snow will fix it all.”

*****

Royal Gorge was home to over nine thousand acres of skiing terrain. There were trails for beginners and intermediate skill levels, plus a few that were more advanced. That was where Jana and Nicole headed. The resort was fairly crowded, but farther into the mountains the activity thinned out.

Cross-country didn’t require ski lifts or standing in lines. Once the day pass was purchased, Jana headed to the slopes with her friend. They’d skied together for too many years to count and were very compatible. Coley was tall, like Jana, and both were athletically built and strongly muscled from the years of skiing.

Sometimes Coley was mistaken as her sister. She did look a lot like Jana. Both had green eyes, long brownish hair, and similar builds. But Coley was a couple inches shorter than Jana’s five eleven. It had become a joke between them, and, on occasion, they’d pretend they were sisters. But neither of them had a sister, or a brother, for that matter.

On the trails for expert skiers, there weren’t any children, families, or noisy tourists. It was more to Jana’s liking. And when she worked out, it was good to have no distractions. The morning was to be a fun ski outing that included plenty of talking.

Jana hadn’t seen her friend in a few days, so there was a lot to catch up on. There were miles of gorgeous trails. But any chatting had to happen early, because cross-country was a challenge even for Jana.

---