Page 99 of The Holiday Fakers
“Brody!” she yells. “This way!”
I run to her side.
“Why didn’t Billy just head back home?” she asks as we rush on.
“I guess Lucky bolted, and he ran after her,” I reply, praying that they went in a straight line.
Ahead is a creek. When we reach it, my heart plummets.
“What is it? What can you see?”
I point at the ice forming at the edges. “See how it’s broken here and on the other side? They went this way.”
“It’s not deep, though. They should be okay, right?”
“Not deep for us, but for a seven-year-old and a puppy who’s low to the ground? And the ice on this side is much more damaged. One of them might have fallen in.”
I look at Piper’s snow boots. Like mine, they rise halfway up her calf.
“We can’t afford to get wet ourselves,” I say. “I’ll go first.”
I don’t wait for her to reply, stepping carefully into the creek and choosing a path where the water runs quickest, where it’s shallowest.
“You doing okay?” I call over my shoulder.
“Peachy!”
We make it safely to the other side, and I bellow Billy’s name as loud as I can, then wait for an answer.
I don’t get one.
Piper grabs my gloved hands as my fear spirals out of control.
“Brody! Look at me! Breathe with me.”
Holding her gaze, I claw myself out of the panic. Her eyes are my focal point. My anchor.
“You’ve got this, Brody. You can find them. I know you can.”
I let out a shuddering breath and give her a nod.
“Okay,” she says. “Where next?”
I figure out which way they went, and we race on, pausing every few strides to yell Billy’s name.
There’s a big tree up ahead, its branches heavy with snow reaching all the way to the ground. If I was a little kid and wanted to make a den, I’d choose there.
I dash forward and lift the lowest branch.
Thank fuck.
“Brody?” Billy asks, his voice faint.
I nod. “We’ve got you, buddy. Everything’s going to be all right.”
Piper drops to her knees beside me and lets out a gasp when she sees Billy. He’s shivering, and his face is so pale it’s almost blue. His coat is around a young golden retriever, who’s whining and licking his hand.
“Okay, bud, we’re going to get you both out of here, but you need to tell me real quick what happened and who’s hurt.”
