Page 4 of SEAL by Fate

The higher in elevation, the greater the snow picked up, and Gray had to slow the accelerator more, which only irritated him. Each minute counted.

Through the ice crystals he saw something ahead. He squinted, trying to make out what it was, and as he drew closer he realized a car was stuck in a snow drift. The boot end blocked the road. What the hell? He jerked the wheel just in time to miss hitting the car, breathing a sigh of relief, but his respite was short lived. He saw a distorted silhouette through the thick snow, then the image of a woman dressed in all white materialized. Gray had no choice but to slam his foot onto the brake causing the wide tires to lock up, crunching the ice and sending the Jeep sliding across the snow-covered road. Keeping the steering wheel in his tight grip, he played tug-of-war with the vehicle, but was losing the battle.

Don’t hit her. Don’t hit her.

Oh God please, don’t let me hit her.

His hands weren’t clean of blood. He’d killed men in the line of duty, but never by accident, and certainly not an innocent woman walking on the road in the middle of a snowstorm. He was now second guessing his decision to drive through this storm. What the hell had he been thinking?

His body went into rescuer mode and he pumped the brakes, swearing at his Jeep to slow down, but because the road ahead was nothing but an ice rink, the tires continued to slide out of control and he knew there was no correcting the wheel.

Time seemed to slow to a crawl as he careened down the white abyss. Through ice crystals, he saw her turn to face the headlights that caught her shocked, wild-eyed expression. It was amazing how clear things seemed in times of distress. This wasn’t the way he wanted to go out and he certainly didn’t want to hurt anyone because of his poor decisions.

She looked like an angel, so beautiful with white-blonde hair and a heart-shaped face. The gown enveloped her like a puffy cloud. Was he imagining things?

Her hands came up in defense mode, her mouth opening in what he guessed would be a scream of fear as he sped toward her. His chest tightened and he could only manage to stare helplessly as he slid closer. He was certain she did the only thing she knew to do and jumped to the side of the road in a flash of white. As if some unseen force took the wheel, the Jeep fish-tailed across the ice and passed the spot where the woman had been.

He could no longer see her as he continued skidding sideways. He couldn’t make out anything except the side of the mountain. This could be the end for him. All the enemy gunfire he’d faced, all the bad guys he’d put behind bars, and this was how he’d go out. It didn’t seem quite fair. He closed his eyes a second before impact. The crushing sound of metal and breaking glass shot through the quiet, jerking him forward as the seatbelt slammed into his body.

The force of hitting rock deployed the air bag and it hit him in the head, similar to how the baseball bat had struck him when he was ten, giving him a concussion and leaving a cut on his cheek that had needed ten stitches. The power of the blow knocked him hard against the back of the seat, the air deflating from his lungs and the seatbelt so tight he couldn’t breathe in.

A whistle and a sudden burst of steam shot up from the hood and he watched the ice crystal explosion through the broken front windshield. He blinked against the pain in his temple and the burning sensation in his knee where he’d struck the dashboard. Why hadn’t he listened to his buddies when they told him to hang tight until daylight? Because Gray was a stubborn man, never listening, even when he should. He’d always been this way. Always facing challenges.

Unlocking the seatbelt, the restraint loosened and some of his pain eased. He lifted his body slightly, making a mental note of any other aches or pains that could signal a broken bone or pulled muscle. Although his legs were shaking and sore, his head hurt, and his wrists ached, he believed he’d made it out without doing any serious damage. Except for his Jeep. It was totaled. And so was his Black Cobra. The screen was smashed. He removed the watch and tossed it onto the passenger seat in frustration.

Thank God he hadn’t hit the woman, but she’d shot over the guardrail. Could she have rolled down the mountainside?

Pulling on the door handle, it wouldn’t open, but with a little force, he knocked out the already cracked glass with his fist and climbed out, falling into a bed of snow. Gray knew if his adrenaline wasn’t racing he’d be freezing because the temperature was well below zero. His breath formed a cloud in the air and the tip of his nose tingled. Thankfully, the Carhartt jacket kept some of the bitter cold out, but he had more important things to concern himself with than frostbite.

The woman. She could be seriously injured.

Ignoring the resistance in his stiff knee, he raced around the back of the Jeep, searching all around just to make sure she wasn’t lying in the road, but he didn’t see her. Thank God.

His heart hitched as he trudged through the deep snow to the other side of the road. If something happened to her, a stranger, he wouldn’t be able to forgive himself. Racing along the edge of the road, his boots slipped and slid, his legs threatening to give out, but luckily, he stayed upright.

Gray stopped, looking for any signs of the woman’s footprints. “Hello?” he yelled, trying to see through the snowflakes that melted on his eyelashes. “Hey? Can you hear me? If you can, holler and I’ll find you.” His voice sounded like it was passing through a covered bridge as everything around him was insulated by snow. The only sound he heard within miles was the hissing and cracking of the Jeep’s busted radiator.

He headed to the spot where he thought he saw her last. Where the hell was she? She couldn’t have just vanished into thin air. If it wasn’t for the sportscar stranded in the snow almost two hundred feet back, he’d almost think he’d imagined her. After all, he thought she was wearing a wedding gown. How ridiculous was that? Who in their right mind would be out in this weather, walking and wearing a gown of all things? Hell, he’d like to think it was impossible, but he’d seen some unbelievable things in his lifetime.

Bracing himself against the strong wind whipping around his neck and ears, he pulled up the collar on his jacket to protect his skin against the frigid wind and continued along the side of the road, looking for any trace of the woman.

Wasting no time, he picked up the pace, wishing he had a flashlight. His boot struck something which sent him off balance. He flailed his arms, trying to catch his balance, but his boots were no match for the ice and he fell, smacking his face into the snow. Spitting out the slush and swiping his cheeks with the arm of his jacket which didn’t help much, he pushed himself up and looked over at what he’d tripped over. The woman! She was lying on her back and seemed to blend in with the drift of snow. He scurried over.

“Hey? Are you okay?” he asked as he looked down at her. Her eyes were closed and there was a smudge of blood on her forehead, and her blonde locks were wet. The light from the moon lit up her face enough that he could see there was a cut along her hairline where she must have struck her head when she jumped. Trained in first aid and rescue, he quickly started mentally listing what he should do to help her. Any other time he wouldn’t move a victim for fear of hurting her worse, but if he left her in the snow, she might very well freeze to death. There was no way an ambulance could make it through the snow and his Jeep wouldn’t be going anywhere. He wasn’t sure how stuck her small car was in the drift, but from what he saw during his fly-by, it looked like it wasn’t going anywhere without a shovel.

Feeling her pulse, it was a little slow, but she was alive. Doing a quick visual exam and then running his hands down her arms and legs, hindered by the fluffy material of the dress and thick coat she wore, there didn’t appear to be any broken bones or major injuries. Although he figured there must be a long and sad story behind it, she was indeed wearing a wedding gown. At least he felt a little better knowing he wasn’t losing his mind.

He had to figure out something fast. Her car was the best bet.

Lifting her into his arms, he carefully scaled the incline that took him to the road. He was panting and his heart pounded hard against his ribcage. He looked down at the beautiful woman, feeling a stab of guilt. Blood left a crimson trail from her hairline down her temple and over her cheek. Although the moonlight made her complexion a pale blue, he had a feeling her skin would be porcelain. White-blonde wavy tendrils of hair were misbehaving and unwinding from the thick mass held in a clasp. Although she was breathing, she was so eerily still and appeared so fragile. Her skin was even cold to the touch.

Gray looked down the white blanketed road and focused on her car. Although the front was buried in snow and probably wouldn’t be useful, at least it had heat and he could figure out who she was and why the hell she was in the middle of a mountain at night in a snowstorm wearing a wedding gown.

He had to work his legs to manage getting through the snow while keeping her safely tucked in his arms. He cradled her slight frame against his chest, protecting her against the frigid breeze and snow. The passenger door to the sports car was unlocked, which wasn’t surprising. She probably wasn’t worried about a break-in. He placed her in the seat, making sure she was settled and the train of the dress was inside before shutting the door and rounding the back of the vehicle to the driver seat. The fit was a bit snug and he was entirely too large, even with the seat pushed back as far as it would go. Shifting his body in the leather, he leaned over and slid his fingers along the woman’s slender neck, checking her pulse again, which seemed stronger.

The keys were still in the ignition and he turned the engine and thankfully it fired. Once the heat had warmed up the space, he adjusted the vents so that all the air was directed on her.

What the hell do I do now?

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