Page 49 of Ultimate Freedom

Mitch’s nod told him what he hoped he’d see. A man who might make better priorities.

Once he felt well enough to get to his feet, shaky but able to stand, he let Demi help him over to the truck where the other young fellow, Justin, sat on the ground, leaning against the wheel. Holding his head in his hands, he didn’t look too good.

“Hey, buddy. How’re you feeling?”

“I keep floating in and out. Sorry.”

“You took a hard hit… probably have a concussion. Why don’t you get in the back seat and rest? We’ll wake you up if you go to sleep.” They all followed and got into the warmth.

Demi brought out the backpack, and other than Justin, she handed the others half a sandwich. “It might settle your nerves. Here’s some hot coffee. Not sure how long we’ll be here, but I know we can all do with something besides fear in our bellies.”

While they ate and conversed, Whit listened to the same story he’d heard many times. The guys had time off from their gold claim and were heading home to see their families. Mitch wanted to get there as his wife was expecting their first born and was nervous being alone. The two men had lived through a month of isolation and had booked a night at the hotel in Hyder before leaving.

“Had to shower and shave off the beards. We looked and smelled like a couple of Sasquatches after so long. Didn’t wantto scare anyone.” Mitch explained, making Demi laugh at the mental image.

Finally, after Whit felt somewhat like his old self, he asked Demi about her being able to contact Dawson.

“Not by calling, but I wrote him a text, and it was sent. Not sure if he received it though. Haven’t gotten any answers.”

“Right. I think we need to get Justin into the clinic for Lexie to look after. He’s fading in and out more than I like to see. Hey Justin, you doing okay?”

Justin slowly opened his eyes, his face pale and shaky. In a trembling voice, he admitted what Whit already knew. “Not feeling so good.”

“Right. Just relax. We’ll get you back to town.” He looked at Demi “I’m sorry honey, we gotta turn around. We’ll call Bella and explain. Once we get Clive and his machines out here, this mess will get cleared away hopefully by tomorrow.”

“I get it. Don’t feel bad. Bella’s safe in Terrace. She’ll understand.”

Whit put the truck in reverse, turned it carefully, and began heading back the way they’d come. They didn’t get three miles before he saw the reason why they hadn’t met up with Clive yet.

Another slide had covered the road at this end, and it was a doozy. Mountains of snow covered the side of the hill and over the highway. Trees and boulders were blended like a rice and raisin pudding, causing one to wonder how long the clearing would take. Making up his mind, Whit swung the truck around once again, heading back to Terrace.

Mitch’s voice came from the back seat. “That’s one friggin’ big avalanche. Looks like ten feet of snow over the road. Hopefully, it’s not as high from the other side.”

“Yeah. Guess our little disaster isn’t as bad. Might as well make use of my plow and see how long it’ll take to get a path cleared.”

Demi hadn’t said a word, understanding that right now Whit would know best what to do.

As if he appreciated her silence, he searched for her hand and held on tight. “It’ll be fine, darling. My old plow works well and can clear away a lot of snow. You and Mitch might have to follow behind and do some manual shoveling but again, I have a bunch of shovels in the back.”

“I don’t mind, Whit. Whatever you think is best. My worry is how far the barrier will be. If it’s only a few feet, no problem.”

“I wish I could tell you myself. With the tree line on one side and the ravine on the other, I guess we’ll just have to take it slow and pray it’s not impassable.

Whit didn’t add that right now with the sun shining, the temperatures were reasonable. But once the darkness descended… with it would bring bitter temperatures. He’d spent more than one night in his truck surviving the winter cold. But he hated to think of her having to go through a similar discomfort, never mind the poor bastard in the back suffering a concussion.

With Mitch’s help, Whit lowered the plow in place and began the slow process of digging through the huge mounds of sticky snow. Demi and Mitch followed with shovels, working at the stuff left behind, trying to make a passable path to drive.

At one point, they came across a huge cedar in the middle of their way that they couldn’t budge. Between Whit and Mitch, they tied a long rope to the jagged trunk and attached the other end to the front of Whit’s vehicle. Backing up and pulling the tree out of the way had to be done slowly. Listening to the creaking sounds from the front bumper, both Mitch and Demiheld their breath until Whit had pulled it to the side so they could sneak by.

It took more than an hour before Whit figured they’d made good progress. He stopped driving and got out, climbing over the hills ahead trying to see where it ended. The cry of joy he released made the others stop and look up. “It’s only a few feet more, and we’ll be good to go.”

Mitch whooped and Demi grinned, waving her shovel before attacking another pile that had slid back onto the path his plow had just made.

In less than an hour, having made a narrow trail through the snow, they would be on their way, and not anytime too soon. While Demi and Mitch drank their last cups of coffee outside in the fading light, he carried his mug with him while he checked on Justin. As he suspected, the poor guy needed a doctor. Thankfully, they’d be getting him to one very soon. “Hang in there, Justin. We’ll be on our way in a few minutes and the hospital will be our first stop.”

Only mumbling came back as an answer, and it made Whit throw out the last of his drink and gather the other two. “Okay, you two. Let’s go.”

As they pulled into town, Whit broke the silence. “Hey, Mitch, I’ll take Justin straight to the hospital. Then where do you want me to drop you?”

---