Page 78 of Snow River

“Your intuition saved our lives,” Ani pointed out gently.“That’s something.”

“Yes.You’re right.”Lila expelled a long breath.“If not for that, and for you guys, you and Charlie, I’d probably be popping pills to make it all go away.”

“Wait.”Molly held up a hand.“You said your intuition isn’t as powerful here.Is that why you’ve been able to stay here longer?”

“I think being here has made me feel like it doesn’t control me.”Yes, that was it.A weight eased off her heart as she said it out loud.“I don’t have to fight it.I don’t have to give in to it.I can just…work with it.”

“Like it’s a part of you, but just one part.”Ani’s dark eyes gleamed with her usual compassion.

“Exactly.It’s part of me, and I accept it, I appreciate it, but it’s not the whole story of Lila Romanoff.”

Her friends raised their glasses to that.The sound of celebratory clinking made it seem official.

A hand wave halfway down the bar got her attention.Lasse Ulstrom leaned one elbow on the counter and beckoned to her.Normally so friendly, today the dog musher wore a serious frown.

“Be right back,” she murmured to her friends, and hurried his way.

“I heard something you might want to know,” Lasse told her in a low voice.“You were asking about the Hardwells.Turns out Billy and Mark were both in Blackbear for a fundraiser not too long ago.Mark’s definitely got his eyes on the governor job.Billy’s cleaned up his act and talks a big game about fighting drug addiction.I still wouldn’t give them the time of day, but a lot of people don’t remember all that mess from before.”

“Thanks, Lasse.Do you happen to know when they were here?”

“Nah, just sometime in the fall.They hosted a bunch of out-of-state money guys for some hunting.”

That knot in Lila’s stomach was getting bigger and more impossible to ignore.She thanked Lasse for the information, and went back to her friends, her mind made up.

“How would you two feel about watching the bar for a while?I’ve just got this nagging feeling that something isn’t right.I told Bear I’d stay here, and I hate to break my word to him.But?—”

“How about this?”When Molly used her lawyer voice, everyone listened.“Ani can watch the bar, and I’ll go with you.That way you won’t be alone.”

Lila swung her gaze over to Ani.She had a permanent limp from a terrible incident that had occurred at the age of twelve.Working the bar entailed a lot of walking back and forth.Would that be too much for her hip?

“Happy to,” said Ani cheerfully.“So long as I can help myself to cappuccinos as needed.”

“Pay you in caffeine?It’s a deal.I can also pay you in money,” Lila added.

“Absolutely not.I’ve got this.Don’t worry.If I have any trouble, I’ll call on Gil.Or maybe Lachlan.He makes the best White Russians, he has a scientific formula for them.He says if he wasn’t a geologist, he’d be a mixologist.”

Her overwhelming sense of relief made Lila realize she’d been itching to go after Bear the minute he’d walked out the door.Did that mean she was letting her intuition control her?

No.She was respecting it.Respecting herself.And just to be safe, she’d bring a throwing knife, the one Bear had given her after their training session in the woods.

“One more question,” she asked her friends.“Did either of you drive a truck here today?Four-wheel drive, hopefully?Me and that F-250 don’t have the best relationship.”

36

As Oil Can had promised,the road out to the Community had been plowed.However, no one had bothered to shovel the old boardwalk that led from the road to the actual train station.The snow had been packed down by foot traffic, so people had been coming and going.Or maybe just going—Bear saw no vehicles on the parking pad other than an old junker with missing tires.

Was everyone gone for the day?The Community was big on group activities, like smoking a bowl and then hiking up a ridge to watch the sunset.Not all of their trips involved drugs, of course.Sometimes they all went blueberry picking or morel hunting.At this time of year, they could be grouse hunting.Or just vibing with the new snow.

Bear approached cautiously.He had a cover story all ready—he was worried about Grant because he hadn’t shown up for work, and wanted to make sure he hadn’t come down with the strange virus that had recently appeared in town.

“Hello?”he called after knocking on the door and getting no answer.“Bear Davis here.I’m looking for Grant Cruz.”

No one answered, but he did hear a sound from inside.Did the Community keep any pets?

He knocked one more time, deciding that his next move would be to go inside and look around.After all, Oil Can had at one point asked him to investigate the syrup episode.That could be considered an open invitation.

Speaking of which…he remembered the photos Nick Perini had left with him, and pulled them up on his phone.One shot showed a very clear footprint in the mud next to the boardwalk, with a speck of red dye to suggest it was related to the vandalism.Now that he was here on the boardwalk, Bear could see the print was on the small side.Maybe Grant had small feet?

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