Page 91 of Snow River

Another sound caught his ear.The snowmobiles were in motion.He focused on them, drowning out all the other sounds, so he could pinpoint their direction.

When the first helicopter’s skids touched the snow, almost immediately the hatch opened and Officer Cromwell prepared to jump out.He and Bear caught sight of each other at the same moment, and both hesitated—probably for the same reason.

Could Cromwell be trusted?He might be here to help the suspects escape, to complete the coverup.Then he caught sight of Sam Coburn strapped into one of the spare seats, and relaxed.He trusted Sam, and if he was involved, it must be because of Molly.

Molly must have gotten Grant to town, then taken care of business and called for reinforcements.Smart cookie.

Bear called to Cromwell, “Suspects on the run.Headed west-southwest through the forest toward Granite Valley.There’s a trail there.Two armed men on snowmobiles, maybe more.”He didn’t know how Hardwell had come to be here.Maybe he had his own transpo.

Bear could see the officer debate with himself—could Bear be trusted or was he the bad guy here?He held steady, not giving an inch.

Cromwell nodded and closed the hatch of the helicopter.It lifted into the air in a whirlwind of snow and headed upslope.

“I suppose he’s going to get all the credit for arresting those goons,” said Lila.

“Maybe.But we have the most important thing.”He tapped his chest, where the plastic bag crinkled.

“Love?”

He tilted his head back and laughed with pure joy.“Yeah.And the evidence they’re all going to want.”

She shielded her face with her arm as a second helicopter appeared in a whir of spinning blades.He settled his arm around her as the helo touched down.This time, when the hatch opened, Molly and Ani waved at them.

“Are you both okay?”called Ani.She held a medical kit on her lap.

“Great!”called Lila.Her smile was pure sunshine.

“Want a ride?”

Lila glanced up at Bear and they smiled at each other.“We were thinking we’d walk down Snow River, but since you’re here…”

“Get in.”Molly waved at them impatiently.“We have so much to tell you.And we have a surprise.”

Another face appeared in the window.A woman in a colorful poncho and a cowboy hat peered at them from behind Molly.

Next to him, Lila gasped.“Nancy Butcher?”

41

A few days later,Lila and Bear drove Nancy to her friend’s fairytale house in the forest, and indeed it did feel like a fairytale ending.Nancy’s reunion with Paulina was so heartwarming that Lila shed tears as she watched.

“I couldn’t tell you I was here,” Nancy told her old friend.“I couldn’t take the chance.But I did sneak out here and peek in the window just to put my eyes on you.”

Paulina gasped.“I saw you!That’s when I fainted.”She turned to Lila and Bear.“I fainted because of her.I just remembered.I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.”She turned back to Nancy.“But why did you come back after all this time?”

“Oof, it’s such a long story.Forty years is a lot of time.When I left Firelight Ridge, I planned to contact the police.I left my journal behind with Allison in case the Hardwells caught up with me.She was supposed to hide it in the hardware store until I got back.I did go to the police like I planned, but they acted really strange as soon as I started talking about the Snow River men’s retreat.I went back to my hotel and lay low.I was really sick because I was pregnant.”

“Did you have the baby?”Paulina asked, a hand covering her friend’s.

“No, in fact I had a miscarriage there in the hotel room.The stress was too much, I think.A couple days later, when I went back to the police, I heard about Paul opening fire at the airstrip and poor Allison…”

She broke off, and the two shared a moment of silence for their lost friend.Lila wished she could say something to them about dream-Allison, but decided not to interrupt their moment.

“You left Alaska after that?”Bear asked, bringing mugs to the table.The kettle was on the woodstove, tea water heating.

“Yes, I was afraid they were going to come after me.You see, I didn’t understand why Paul would do such a thing.I decided that the Hardwells must have paid him to kill Allison because they knew she had the journal.That meant that even after Paul was arrested, they could just pay someone else to come after me.I wasn’t safe anywhere near here.I left and went to California.I had to move a few times because I thought someone had tracked me down.After things calmed down, I tried to forget about Firelight Ridge.”

“Did you?”Paulina murmured the question.

---