Page 24 of Hero's Prize

“Colton was more than halfway down the mountain, past all the most dangerous parts of the stunt, when the avalanche hit like ten or fifteen minutes ago,” Becky explained. “He stayed in front of it for a little bit, then…”

Then he went under.

“Was it ten or fifteen minutes ago?” Ella whispered.

Becky blinked at the question. “Honestly, I’m not sure the exact time. Why?”

“The first thirty minutes with an avalanche are the most important.” Ella forced the words out. She knew this from research she’d done about some of Colton’s other stunts. “After thirty minutes, life expectancy…”

She didn’t finish. She didn’t have to. The reporter on the screen was talking about the same thing, statistics popping up. Survival probability plummeted fromninety-two percent at fifteen minutesto nearly zero after thirty minutes.

Every minute they didn’t find Colton literally brought him closer to death. So, whether the avalanche was ten or fifteen minutes ago made a huge difference.

“He was wearing a beacon,” Lilah said. “They’ll get to him.”

A beacon meant they weren’t looking for a needle in a haystack, but it didn’t necessarily mean they’d get to him in time. Not to mention the injuries he could’ve sustained during the avalanche itself. The sliding snow looked deceptively smooth when watching it from a distance. But in reality, the force was enough to take down buildings.

Lilah’s phone rang, causing them all to jump. “Bear. Talk to us. I’ve got Becky and Ella here with me.” She put the call on speaker so they could all hear.

“I’m on the comms system with Derek and trying to relay info to you guys and Aunt Girl as we get it, so bear with me. The helo has the beacon signal, and they are over Colton’s location.”

“What do we know?” Lilah asked. “How many minutes has he been under?”

“Seventeen,” Bear said, his usually jovial voice more somber than Ella had ever heard it.

Seventeen minutes. Ella looked down at her watch and marked the time.

“Derek is in the helicopter with Uncle Boy and one of the camera operators. Derek is getting them as low to the beacon as he can. They don’t have a lot of equipment, but they’re going to be Colton’s best chance.”

Because no other rescuers would be able to get to him in time.

“Derek and Uncle Boy Riley know what they’re doing,” Becky said, wrapping her arm around Ella.

Becky had every confidence in her husband’s piloting abilities, and honestly, Ella did too. And Boy Riley—Colton’s dad—had moreexperience with stunts and rescues than the majority of the people on the planet.

But everybody in the room knew the odds were not in Colton’s favor right now.

“There’s no place to land close enough to get to Colton in time,” Bear said. “And… Shit. Hold.”

Bear’s voice cut off.

They all looked up at the screen as they waited for Bear to come back to the report. The news had switched to footage of people all over the resort, both inside and outside, watching their screens. Some were crying; some were praying.

“That’s so damned fake. What do they care? They don’t even know Colton.” Ella knew her rage at Colton’s fans was misplaced, but she couldn’t stop it. “I found two of his little fan club members outside his door in the middle of the night last night. They’d paid hotel staff to tell them what room Colton was in. But they didn’t know him. They don’t really care about him.”

Becky’s arm tightened around her shoulders. “It’s going to be okay, Ella.”

“You don’t know that.” Ella glanced at her watch. Colton had now been entombed nearly twenty minutes. “He’s running out of time.”

“Holy shit.” Bear’s voice came back on the line. “Derek couldn’t land the bird, so Uncle Boy Riley jumped while Derek hovered as low as he could. He’s in the snow, digging with a fucking helmet. Sorry, I had to tell Aunt Girl first.”

No one could blame Bear for giving Colton’s mother an update before them.

“Can they tell how deep in the snow Colton is?” Lilah asked.

“Derek said the beacon was reporting four to six feet.”

Ella shuddered at the thought that Colton was currently six feet under. It felt way too ominous.

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