Descent (A Stone Mountain Mystery Book 1)

by Kristina Stanley

  Aunt Lisa was his mom’s sister and was the generous one in the family. She adopted Nora when Nora’s mom died and brought her from Toronto to Holden. Jeff had fallen in love with Nora when he was fourteen years old. Man, he’d been serious for his age, and he’d pined for her until they were in the last year of high school and she finally agreed to go out with him. His biggest regret was what he’d done the night of his prom. That had started the path to Donny’s car accident.

  Jeff set his ski boots on the boot dryer and hung his poles on a hook. He stacked his helmet and goggles on the shelf beside the garage door. He ran a cloth along the full length of the bottom of each ski. He checked for any scratches, slid his fingers along the edges feeling for nicks, and once satisfied set them in the rack for Donny to tune later. He leaned his skis against the wall and grabbed a mop. Taking his time, making sure he didn’t miss a spot, he cleaned the floor.

  McKenzie had beaten him in the training session on the Super-G course by thirty one-hundredths of a second. No matter how hard he trained, he couldn’t beat the guy.

  The door to the house banged open and a stream of light made him squint. His father stood, a halo surrounding his head, and Jeff surprised himself by laughing at the image of his dad looking like an angel. An angel of all things. He touched a bruise on his thigh and inwardly cursed.

  Jeff’s white-blond hair matched his dad’s. On the outside, Jeff was a younger version with a square jaw and a pug nose. He knew girls fell for his Nordic appearance. Too bad his mom hadn’t searched deeper. On the inside, he guaranteed himself, he would never be anything like his dad.

  “What the hell is taking you so long?”

  “I—”

  “Did you do what I asked?”

  Yeah. Like I had the fastest time just because you asked. He stepped away from his dad and placed a ski between them.

  “Are you threatening me with that?”

  “No, I need to wipe the bottom. Coach said to keep them dry.”

  “You were fastest then.”

  Jeff shook his head and studied imaginary water spots on the floor.

  “Coward. You can’t even speak.”

  “I know I’ve disappointed you. I’ll do better next time.”

  “Damn you. If you want to make the Olympic team, you need to be first.”

  Being an Olympic skier wasn’t Jeff’s dream. That dream belonged to his dad. His dad worked at the paper mill, and he’d been bragging for years about how his sons were going to make him rich. Donny might have.

  A month previously, on his twenty-first birthday, Jeff decided this would be his last year competing. He wanted to go to university and make something of himself. He didn’t plan on spending his life working in a factory, and it’s not as if skiing would provide a good enough living if he wanted Nora back. He missed her. He wanted her to move away with him. Nora had been dating that McKenzie bastard for almost a year, and pretending he was okay with their relationship was killing him.

  Before the accident, Jeff’s brother had the talent. Donny was two years younger and had always been faster than Jeff. After the car accident, their dad had taken a wall’s worth of newspaper clippings and burned them in the fireplace. His first words to Donny had been, “What the hell am I going to tell the guys at the plant?”

  The townspeople of Holden had collected money and bought Donny an F1 custom-made sit-ski with Harley-Davidson shock components and a set of lightweight outriggers. They’d presented the gift to him, smiles all around, photos being taken. That night Jeff had heard Donny in his room, crying. He hadn’t gone to him but wished he had. The sit-ski sat in the back of Donny’s van, gleaming the way only brand new equipment can gleam as if waiting for Donny. Someday, maybe.

  Jeff’s dad took a step toward him, bringing him back into the present.

  “Dad, please.”

  “Don’t be a sissy. You need to take what’s coming.”

  “I have another training run tomorrow. I’ll do better.” Jeff’s eyes stung and he blinked, knowing he couldn’t cry in front of his dad.

  “You can’t guarantee that.”

  Donny maneuvered his wheelchair into the doorway. “Dad?”

  “Stay out of this.”

  “Mom just drove up.”

  Their dad respected their mom. It was his one good quality. As far as Jeff knew, he’d never hit her. His dad tried to make her happy, but she just couldn’t be. When she was around, Donny and Jeff were safe. Otherwise…

  His dad broke into his thoughts. “I’ll be waiting for you tomorrow, and you can tell me personally how much you beat McKenzie by.”

  * * *

  The second Nora entered Steve’s rental unit, he yanked at the top button of her army-green sweater and pressed his groin into hers. She’d changed into the low cut sweater because a view of her cleavage, even though small, turned him on. Using his hips, he shoved her ass onto the side table that rested in the corner of the entryway. She wrapped her legs around his butt and let him kiss her.

  Steve took what he wanted when he wanted, and she almost gave in. He smelled of athletic sweat, a manly smell, a smell that excited her. Ignoring the building heat of desire, she turned her head away from him. “Hang on a sec.” Nora laughed at his eagerness. “You can undress me later.”

  He pulled her face toward his. “What’s with you?”

  She placed both palms on his chest. “Stop. I need to tell you something.”

  He slipped his tongue along the edge of her ear, and a shiver ran down her spine. “We can talk after.”

  “Please.”

  Steve sighed and made imaginary quotes with his fingers. “Okay. I can see you need to talk.”

  Steve wasn’t much of a communicator. Action was his thing, but she had to tell him. She’d been daydreaming about their wedding day, and the picture hadn’t included a ginormous belly. They needed to get married before she started to show.

  She kicked off her army boots. Her cargo pants hung low on her still-flat belly, exposing a slice of skin. “I have some happy news.”

  “Did Charlie put you on permanent?”

  “Figures your first thought would be about me tuning your skis.”

  “You’re talented. I like the advantage you give me.”

  She couldn’t help herself and was flattered. He didn’t give praise often, so he must be in a good mood. The timing was right. “Can we sit?”

  “Wow, this must be serious.”

  Nora followed Steve into his living room, buttoned her sweater and snuggled beside him on the couch. Her throat tightened, and all of a sudden, she couldn’t speak.

  “You’re being weird. Since when can’t you talk?”

  “I thought I knew how I was going to tell you this, but…”

  “Can you get to the point? We’ve got better things to do.”

  Nora swallowed hard, straightened her back and said the dreaded words, “I’m pregnant.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “I think so. I took a home pregnancy test, and the result was positive. I haven’t seen a doctor yet. I wanted to tell you first.”

  Steve pushed himself off the couch and paced in front of the coffee table. Workout equipment crammed the room, ski magazines with articles about him littered the table and photos of him crossing the finish line covered the walls. Everything in the room screamed pay attention to Steve McKenzie.

  Nora followed him with her eyes. He wore a corduroy shirt over a white T-shirt, hanging outside loose jeans. Bruises from his ski boots covered the tops of his bare feet. His black hair, buzzed within a centimeter of his scalp, left pale skin shining through. His body indicated agitation. He just needed a little time. She’d been shocked at first too. She’d been thinking about the baby for days, and he’d only had moments.

  He rubbed his thumb over the bend in his nose. “It’s early though. Right?”

  Nora’s stomach cramped. He couldn’t mean an abortion. She’d had the same thought but briefly. Once he realized the child wa
s his, he wouldn’t want her to get rid of the baby. “A few weeks, at the most.”

  “We were careful.”

  “I know.”

  He stopped pacing and his back went rigid. “It can’t be mine.”

  He couldn’t know. She’d made that mistake once. Just once. Her eyes brightened with tears. She’d dreamt about him proposing, telling her everything would be okay, that they’d be a family. How dumb could she be? “Of course it’s yours.”

  “I doubt it. I made sure of it. Who else have you been with?”

  “I love you. Why would you say something like that?”

  Steve glared down at her in the same manner he used with people he thought were beneath him. “This is not what I want.”

  “It’s not what I want either, but—”

  “Then get rid of it.”

  “We can manage together.”

  Steve shook his head, and an eerie calmness settled on him.

  Nora backed into the corner of the couch.

  “Time for you to go. This has nothing to do with me.”

  “You don’t mean that.”

  “I would never have a child with you.”

  “Please.”

  “I know who you slept with. He told me he only slept with you to get at me. As if that would affect my skiing.”

  Nora shook her head.

  “Don’t look so surprised. The baby’s not mine. I don’t want to see you again.”

  Nora bolted from the room without grabbing her jacket. The cold air slammed into her face and bare neck. She didn’t care. She ran until she couldn’t suck any more air into her lungs.

  * * *

  Nora pulled her cell from her backpack and called Lisa, her adoptive mom, her safe place. She tucked her fingers inside her sleeve and pressed the phone tight against her head, blocking the wind as best she could.

  In a voice just above a whisper, Lisa said, “Hello.”

  Nora flopped onto a snow bank, and her rear end sunk in the snow. Darkness surrounded her. She was invisible. She didn’t matter. If only she could melt like a snowman in spring and disappear. Without her winter coat, the cold air stung the bare skin exposed by her low cut sweater. The sweater she’d chosen for Steve. How could he kick her out? Didn’t he care at all about her?

  Lisa cleared her throat and spoke louder. “Hello?”

  Tears froze on Nora’s cheeks before they reached her chin, and she didn’t bother to wipe them away. She sniffed and her nostrils stuck together, freezing into place. The cold air took away her sense of smell. At least Steve’s scent lingered no more. “Lisa, it’s me. Where are you?”

  “I’m at the Morley’s. My sister and I needed to talk.” Lisa hesitated. “It’s late. Are you okay?”

  Nora could imagine Lisa and her sister hiding in the Morley’s garage, trying to talk privately. Men were creeps. Her shivering began with a slight shake and then grew into a tremor that wouldn’t stop. “Steve just broke up with me.”

  “Oh, baby, I’m sorry. Did you tell him?”

  Nora fisted a ball of snow and threw it at the nearest tree. Smashing against a lodge-pole pine, the snow sprayed in all directions. The sound of Steve’s head hitting the tree would be more satisfying than snow hitting bark. “I did, and he kicked me out like I’ve never meant anything to him.” Like I’m a piece of garbage.

  Lisa groaned and then asked, “Do you want me to come over?”

  “No, I just want to go to bed and never wake up.” Nora wished she hadn’t said that to Lisa. The words must have terrified her.

  “Don’t say that. I’m on my way.”

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Day One: November 28th

  Ian Reed left the administration building and heard boots crunching on snow before he saw McKenzie. The sun hadn’t risen yet, and the only light came from a nearby streetlamp.

  “What were you doing in the tuning room so early?” McKenzie asked.

  What he was doing at the resort was none of McKenzie’s business, so he lied. “Finishing some work for Charlie.”

  McKenzie shoved his hands into the pocket of his jeans. He wore his own ski jacket, not the team jacket, unzipped and flapping in the breeze. The jerk must be on his way to change into his race suit.

  “I’ve got news for you. The bitch is yours,” McKenzie said.

  “What are you talking about?”

  “I dumped Nora last night. You can have her.”

  Ian was offended and couldn’t say why. It’s not as if he’d treated Nora well either. “Nora’s not a deck of cards you can trade around.”

  McKenzie stepped closer to Ian, breathing in his air space. “She’s got a surprise for you, and you deserve it.”

  Ian turned back to the tuning room just to get away from McKenzie. He’d been excited about putting on his racing suit but didn’t want to spend another second with McKenzie. He had plenty of time to change before the training session started.

  “Don’t you want to know what the surprise is?”

  Ian opened the outer door. “Not really.”

  “Fine. I’m sure she’ll tell you eventually. I talked to Coach yesterday.”

  Ian stopped mid-step. “So?”

  “I told him if he wants me on the team, he has to kick you off. It doesn’t matter that your dad’s the president, Coach will side with me.”

  “I doubt it.”

  “When I tell him about you using Nora to get at me, that you’ve been trying to bring me down for months, he won’t want you anywhere near me. I’m his dream. Enjoy your last day training.”

  Without saying a word, Ian stepped through the outer doorway and returned to the empty tuning room. No way would Jenkinson kick him off the team if his speed made McKenzie seem like a snail. Ian’s career depended on the next training session, and he would deliver. McKenzie was finished.

  * * *

  The signal blasted, and the racer between the gates shot his legs backward, his head and shoulders forward and burst over the start line. He tucked his curved poles around his sides, bent his knees and rounded the first gate. His elbow whacked the second gate, but he kept his balance. He picked up speed, skirted the third gate, and the timing screen showed he clocked ninety-four kilometers per hour. His edges cut the ice and held firm.

  Rounding the fourth gate, the racer pressed hard against his edges, but instead of power transferring to the snow, one boot released from its binding. The racer flew into the air with speed. He swung his arms forward, not fast enough to break his fall, and his head slammed into the ice packed surface.

  The racer’s limp body rag-dolled down the steep descent. He plowed over the fifth gate, flattening the pole to the ground. The orange safety netting, lining the side of the run, stopped him from sliding into the forest.

  * * *

  Dead. A Holden skier was dead. Kalin was sure of it. No breath escaped from his lips. His neck twisted at an odd angle. Kalin would never forget the image. She just didn’t know whose image was frozen in her brain.

  She returned to her office with Ben’s words, “You better go tell Reed,” echoing in her mind. After chasing Ben on her snowmobile and reaching the downed skier only seconds behind him, she’d known the Holden skier was seriously injured. She’d left the race course without thinking about what Reed would want to know. Not exactly director material behavior.

  She’d found Reed in his office and told him a skier from the Holden team crashed after he rounded the fourth gate and Ben was treating him. Reed had been angry she hadn’t waited at the scene long enough to find out who the skier was or if he was actually dead. All she’d told him was she thought he was dead. She didn’t mention she’d almost hit a lift tower while driving her snowmobile to the summit.

  She grabbed the back of her office chair and leaned on it for support. How could she not have asked who the skier was? Before she had a chance to sit behind her desk, her cell rang.

  “Can you come meet me?” Ben asked in a voice that sounded rough, as if he had a cold.
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  “Where are you?”

  “Mountain Side. Steve McKenzie’s dead.”

  Nora was crazy about McKenzie, and Kalin’s heart ached for her. The pregnancy test. A baby. Poor Nora. “I’m on my way.”

  In a rush to leave her office, she forgot her toque and mitts. By the time she reached the café, her ears were frozen. She pressed her palms over the sides of her head and was glad she didn’t have pierced ears. Imagining metal in her lobes made her feel even colder. Mad at herself for thinking about her ears, instead of Nora who was about to be crushed, Kalin entered the Mountain Side Café.

  She found Ben slouched over a table, clenching a Styrofoam cup with both hands. He pushed a coffee in her direction. The café, with its cedar chairs and tables, hardwood floors and mustard walls, exuded a welcoming atmosphere. The gloom on Ben’s face did not match the decor.

  He blinked several times. “There’ll be an investigation.”

  “That’s okay. You did everything right.” The aroma of coffee tempted her, but she moved her cup out of the way and caressed his forearm. “Has anyone told Nora?”

  Ben rubbed his hand over his eyes and breathed deeply. “I’m not sure.”

  “What happened after I left?”

  Ben pulled his sweater over his head and piled it on the chair beside him. Sweat ringed the neck of his fire department T-shirt. He clenched his fists, and his biceps flexed against his sleeves. “I administered CPR until we got him down to the ambulance, but—”

  “But nothing. You treated him well.”

  “He was at full speed. Everyone’s talking about run injection and that the run was too icy.”

  “I need to call Reed and tell him the skier was McKenzie.”

  “He already knows.”

  “He needs to be told run injection is being blamed. Who else knows McKenzie’s dead?” When he was with her, Ben wore his emotions on his face, but he controlled them in front of others. He was barely keeping a blank expression, and she knew what the effort cost him.