Page 32 of Up to Snow Good
He flipped to another camera angle.
“Look.” He pointed. I shrugged. A two-foot narrow space separated the shed and the mountain.
Caden shut the laptop and movedto the door. He punched the code into the keypad and the door opened.
He peeked his head out the door and sighed. He pushed the door open wide. I half expected snow tofill the room. It wasn’t.
I wrapped the blanket around my shoulders and followed him.
I flopped on the bed.
Caden ran to a door on the other side of the shed. He came back a few minutes later.
“It will take them weeks to dig us out.” Caden took my hand and squeezed it. “We could be long gone by then.”
“What do you mean?” I narrowed my eyes. Caden’s eyes grew wide and dark.
“There’s a snowmobile in the back of the shed. We could get on it and ride south, towards Washington. Once there, we can get on a plane to anywhere.”
“No one would look for us for a while.” I gripped his forearm. “They would think we’re already dead until the summer when the snow in the valley melts.”
“We could be on the other side of the world by then.” Caden rubbed my arms. “Some place warm.”
He laughed. I smiled back.
“We would be free,” I whispered and leaned my head against Caden’s shoulder. He kissed the back of my hand and rested it on his heart. It was racing like mine.
We were talking, not making any decisions.
I hated my father and the way he controlled my life. He would think I was dead. I wouldn’t wish the feeling of loss on anyone. We’d experience it when my mother died and it turned him into the man he was today, consumed with control.
I knew he would never accept Caden’s and my relationship. He’d killed people for far less than sleeping with his daughter.
The idea was crazy. We couldn’t disappear.
Or could we?
It would take weeks to dig us out.
We had plenty of food, and if the generator worked and the computers worked, we could communicate with the outside world. Once my dad knew about the avalanche, he’d be on his way and rent a helicopter to come up here himself to find us.
And when he rescued us, what happened then?
Back to our lives. Back to being under my dad’s rule. Back to marrying a man I didn’t love. It wasn’t the life I imagined for myself.
Caden fell to his knees. I stared into his eyes. All I imagined was right here in front of me.
* * *
Caden
“Mari.” I kneeled in front of her and ran my hands down her thighs. “I love you.”
Her chin dropped. I lifted it. Tears pooled in her eyes.
“I will continue to love you no matter what you decide. If you want me—”
“Of course I want you.” She grabbed the collar of my sweatshirt.
