Deep Freeze

by Diane Muldrow

  Connor didn’t say much as he and Natasha walked along the path. “So, um, where are we going?” she finally asked.

  “It’s just up here a little way,” replied Connor. They passed Natasha’s cabin and came to a fork in the path. Natasha had never been down this way before.

  Suddenly, Connor grabbed her arm. “Right here,” he said, gesturing out to a small clearing between the mountains. The full moon shone brightly on the untouched snow, which glittered like a million tiny diamonds.

  “Wow,” Natasha breathed. “It’s so beautiful!”

  “Yeah,” Connor said softly. “I took a walk out here last night. When I saw it, I thought of you. I, um, I thought you might like to see it.”

  Natasha’s cheeks had turned pink from the cold, and her pale blue eyes sparkled. “Thanks for showing me. It’s amazing.”

  They stood for a minute in silence. Eventually, Natasha turned to Connor to suggest they go back to camp, when, to her surprise, he leaned over and quickly brushed his lips against hers.

  Whoa, Natasha thought, stunned. I didn’t see that coming! What do I do now?

  “Are you, um, mad?” Connor asked nervously.

  “No, I’m just, uh, surprised,” Natasha replied, blinking.

  “Natasha?” asked a voice behind them.

  Natasha turned around to see someone standing behind them on the path.

  It was Mrs. Ross!

  Oh, no! She must have seen Connor kiss me!

  “Would you come here, please?” Mrs. Ross asked formally, a forced smile on her face.

  Connor’s eyes grew wide. “Uh, see you tomorrow, Natasha. Good night, Mrs. Ross,” he stammered before hurrying away.

  “Come back to my cabin. I want to talk to you,” Mrs. Ross said firmly.

  Uh-oh, she’s really mad, Natasha thought as she climbed the stairs to Mrs. Ross’s loft.

  “Exactly what is going on? Who was that? Was that that Connor boy? How long has this been going on? Natasha, I am just shocked that you have been sneaking around like this! When I tell your father—”

  “Wait, wait, wait, wait!” Natasha interrupted her mother. “Stop jumping to all these conclusions! Connor just told me he wanted to show me something, and then he suddenly leaned over and kissed me. I’m as surprised as you are!” Natasha looked her mother straight in the eye. “Please don’t be so suspicious of me! I don’t sneak around on you and Dad. But—I need some privacy!”

  “Privacy? Natasha, I’m your mother. It’s my job to keep you out of trouble!”

  “But why do you think I’m going to get into trouble?” Natasha asked. “I’ve always been a good kid. You can’t stop trusting me just because I’m a teenager now!”

  Mrs. Ross sighed deeply and rubbed her temples. “Honestly, Natasha, I just don’t know if I’m ready to deal with you and boys,” she said.

  “I know, Mom,” Natasha said quietly. “Molly and Amanda’s mom doesn’t let them date.” She took a deep breath. “I...like Connor. I do. And I guess he likes me, too. But there’s nothing else going on. I promise. And if he does ask me out or anything, I’ll tell you all about it.”

  Mrs. Ross smiled at Natasha. “You’ll always be my little girl, sweetheart. That’s why it’s easy for me to forget you’re growing up. You’ll have to help me through it, okay? Let’s make a deal—you’ll keep Daddy and me informed, and we won’t jump to conclusions. And we’ll try to respect your privacy. Okay?”

  “Okay, Mom,” Natasha replied, smiling. “I love you.”

  “I love you, Natasha,” Mrs. Ross replied, brushing Natasha’s bangs off her forehead. “Well, it’s almost nine o’clock. I’ll walk you back to your cabin.”

  “Just partway?”

  “Okay.” Mrs. Ross chuckled. “I can do that.”

  Late that night, after the other girls in Cabin Four had fallen asleep, Natasha lay awake, thinking about Connor—and about her first kiss. Natasha hadn’t told anyone else about it. It seemed too private, too special to share with the entire bunk.

  I can’t believe he kissed me! Natasha thought dreamily. I wonder if he uses ChapStick. He smelled nice, too. Like apple soap or something...

  Though Natasha had promised her mother that she wouldn’t start dating, she couldn’t help but wish she could kiss Connor again. Maybe someday, she thought, a small smile creeping over her face.

  Chapter 9

  “Look! Here they come!” Peichi said excitedly the next morning. Breakfast was almost over and Omar, Connor, Justin, and the rest of their cabin were straggling in the door.

  “Awww, they look exhausted!” Amanda said, giggling. “I almost feel bad. Almost!”

  Natasha saw Connor looking at her. She mouthed the word, “Sorry!” to him as he grinned at her. Oh, good, he’s not mad, Natasha thought, relieved. She looked down shyly, remembering their moment in the moonlight.

  “Look at Omar’s face!” Peichi said. “He’ll do something crazy to get back at us. We’d better be on our guard.”

  “And let’s think up another prank,” added Molly. “I can’t believe we’re leaving tomorrow! This weekend has flown by.”

  “And it’s been so much fun, too,” Natasha said.

  “Well, this morning isn’t gonna be fun,” Amanda said, making a face. “We’ve got cleaning duty—ugh! I can’t imagine cleaning without our vacuum and ScumBuster.”

  After lunch, the girls went back to their cabin to change into their ski gear. When Molly opened the door, her mouth fell open.

  “How did they do it?” she asked, amazed.

  “Do what?” Amanda pushed past her sister and stopped in the middle of the room. “Ohmigosh! ” she shrieked. “Those guys are totally out of control!”

  The rest of the girls hurried into the cabin, and burst out laughing when they saw an enormous, five-foot snowman in the center of the room. It had a face made out of rocks and sticks, and was wearing a Yankees baseball cap.

  Shawn shivered. “They must have turned off the heat—it’s freezing in here! That’s why it hasn’t melted.”

  “That’s Omar’s hat,” Peichi exclaimed, grabbing the Yankees cap off the snowman’s head.

  “Look at how they put these trash bags on the floor under it,” Natasha marveled. “They really thought of everything!”

  “Well, we’ve got to get it out of here,” Iris said practically.

  “I have an idea!” Molly exclaimed. “Let’s take off the head and middle. Then we can roll the base out. We’ll reassemble the snowman right outside our door.”

  “Might as well,” Peichi said. “They worked so hard on this prank—now we’re gonna have to think of something really good!”

  Fifteen minutes later, the girls had reassembled the snowman outside. Omar, Justin, and Connor walked by casually, pretending that they were on their way to the slopes. “Hey—cool snowdude!” Omar called to the girls. “How’d you make it so big?”

  “Ha ha, Omar,” Peichi retorted. “Are you missing something?” She waved his Yankees cap high in the air.

  “Peichi! You found my hat! Oh, thank you so much!” Omar tried to grab his hat, but Peichi held it out of his reach and jumped back.

  “I don’t think so, Omar,” she said. “Aw, come on, Cheng,” Omar grinned. “Don’t make me come get it.” He reached down and scooped up a big handful of snow.

  “Okay, okay,” Peichi said, thrusting the hat at Omar.

  Omar grabbed his hat, bent the brim a few times, and put it on over his ski cap. “Thanks, Peichi. You’re my hero! Truce?”

  “Yeah, right,” Peichi replied with a mischievous smile.

  Omar looked so goofy wearing the two hats that everyone cracked up.

  “Listen, we’re gonna hit the slopes one more time,” Justin spoke up. “It looks like it’s going to snow this afternoon, so we’d better get out there. Want to come?”

  “Sure,” Natasha said quickly. She caught Connor’s eye and smiled at him.

  “Actually, I think I’m going to hang out in the l
odge this afternoon,” Shawn said. “It’s too cold for me.” She grabbed a book from her backpack.

  “Okay, Shawn, we’ll see you at dinner—maybe before, if it starts snowing,” said Amanda. The girls and the boys trudged toward the slope, while Shawn set off for the lodge.

  On the way, Shawn saw Angie and her crew walking toward the slopes, as well. Uh-oh, Shawn thought, her heart starting to beat a little faster. Just keep walking, Angie. Please just leave me alone.

  But Angie couldn’t resist a chance to taunt Shawn. “Hey, Shawn! What are you doing all by yourself?” she called out loudly.

  “I’m just going to hang out in the lodge and read,” Shawn answered, hoping her voice sounded normal.

  “Oh, okay,” Angie replied. “I was afraid that your other friends had dumped you, too.” Shrieking with laughter, Angie continued down the path, leaving Shawn to stand alone, red-faced and shaking.

  Maybe it will never stop, Shawn thought sadly as she reached the lodge. Maybe Angie will keep picking on me for the rest of middle school...and then high school...maybe she will never stop.

  Three hours later, the first snowflakes started falling. Shawn, wrapped up in her book, didn’t even notice. She was the only person in the rec room, and it felt so relaxing to be by herself for a little while, curled up in a comfy overstuffed armchair.

  Suddenly, the door to the rec room burst open, and Angie ran in.

  “Shawn! Shawn!” she shrieked breathlessly.

  “What? What is it?” Shawn asked warily, sitting up.

  “Oh, it’s so horrible. Amanda tried to ski down the Five Point slope and she hit a tree! She’s crying and bleeding and I think her leg is broken or something. She’s asking for you, Shawn. You’ve got to go sit with her while I get help!”

  “Ohmigosh,” Shawn gasped, dropping her book. She threw on her parka and began tying her bootlaces. “Where is she? Did you call an ambulance?”

  “She’s on the far side of the slope, near the bottom. You can go through the woods to get to her. Molly is with her, but—but it looks pretty bad.” Angie bit her lip and looked genuinely worried. “I have to go get Mr. D.”

  “Thanks so much for finding me, Angie,” Shawn said gratefully as she ran out of the room.

  Outside, Shawn ran as fast as she could, her feet weighed down by the heavy snow boots.

  By the time Shawn got to the woods, the snow was falling faster. She brushed the powdery flakes out of her eyes and pushed through the low branches of some large pine trees. Shawn’s heart pounded faster and faster as she imagined Amanda, in pain, crying. Finally, she saw a speck of light ahead and realized she must be at the Five Point slope.

  Shawn sucked in her breath sharply as she looked up the mountain. It looked terrifying—incredibly steep, studded with gnarled trees and rocks half-covered with snow. Oh, Amanda, Shawn thought. Why would you ever try to ski down this?

  “Amanda! Molly!” Shawn yelled. “Amanda!”

  There was no answer.

  There was no sound at all, except for the whistling wind.

  Shawn shivered, but only partly from cold. “Amanda?” she called again. “Amanda, where are you?”

  Nothing.

  It’s so quiet up here, Shawn realized. I should be able to hear them, especially if Amanda is crying. And they should be able to hear me...

  A terrible thought began to dawn on Shawn. Unless they aren’t up here. Suddenly, it all made sense to Shawn. There’s no way Amanda would ski down this slope. She didn’t even want to.

  Shawn picked up a rock and threw it. She’d never felt so angry before in her life. “I hate you, Angie!” she screamed into the wind. She pictured Angie back at the cozy lodge, telling everyone that Shawn was a total idiot, making fun of her to the entire seventh-grade class.

  Shawn took a deep breath and tried to calm down. It’s freezing here, she thought, shivering again. And creepy, too. It’s like there’s no one else in the world, except for me. Shawn stomped back into the woods, hurrying toward the lodge.

  It was nearly dark now, and the snow was falling heavily. The canopy of thick pines blocked out the last of the daylight. Shawn tried to walk in a straight line through the woods, but found herself wandering in circles. Soon, the woods were completely dark.

  Shawn slumped against the trunk of a large tree and shivered uncontrollably from cold and from fear. I’m lost in the woods, in a snowstorm...

  And no one knows where I am.

  Chapter 10

  “I can’t believe how cold it got out there!” Amanda exclaimed as she changed her clothes before dinner. “Look—my toes are bright pink, and I was wearing two pairs of socks under my boots!”

  “I heard Mr. Hudson say that the storm might turn into a blizzard,” Peichi reported. “Wouldn’t that be cool? What if we got stuck here an extra day!”

  “Oooh, I’ll keep my fingers crossed!” cried Iris.

  “I am so hungry!” Natasha said. “Let’s hurry over to the lodge. We can hang out with Shawn before dinner.”

  At the lodge, the girls searched the dining room and the rec room, but there was no sign of Shawn.

  “That’s weird. Did we pass her on the way from the cabin?” asked Molly.

  “I didn’t see her,” Amanda replied doubtfully.

  Elizabeth checked her watch. “Dinner is in half an hour. I’m sure she’ll be back.”

  The twins exchanged a glance. “You know, I think I’ll go back to the cabin real quick to see if she’s there,” Molly said.

  “Me, too,” Amanda and Natasha quickly said as Peichi nodded her head.

  Tessa shrugged. “Okay. See you in the dining room!”

  The Chef Girls trudged through the snow back to their cabin, only to find it dark and deserted. For a moment, no one spoke.

  “Well, maybe she went outside for something, and then went right back to the lodge,” Peichi finally said.

  “Maybe,” Molly and Amanda said together—but it was obvious they weren’t convinced.

  The girls hurried back through the falling snow. From outside, the lodge glowed with warm light, and they could see several students through the windows, laughing and having a great time.

  She’s got to be in the lodge—where else would she be? Molly thought.

  It was just after six, and the dining room was filled with hungry students eagerly awaiting dinner. The Chef Girls hurried over to their usual table, where Iris, Tessa, and Elizabeth were waiting for them.

  Shawn wasn’t there.

  “This is seriously weird,” Molly said with a frown. “Shawn wasn’t at the cabin. And she knows dinner is at six.”

  “I’m worried,” Amanda said bluntly.

  “Okay,” Natasha said slowly. “Um, I’m sure there’s nothing to worry about. But I’ll tell my mom anyway.”

  Natasha crossed the room to the table where the chaperones and teachers were having dinner. The adults stopped eating and looked at her as she approached.

  “Hi, sweetie,” Mr. Ross said cheerfully. “How is everything?”

  “Um, fine,” Natasha replied cautiously, wishing that all the adults weren’t staring at her. “But, um, we can’t find Shawn.”

  “What do you mean, sweetheart?” Mrs. Ross asked, raising her eyebrows.

  “Well, she didn’t come skiing with us this afternoon. She just wanted to read her book in the rec room,” Natasha explained. “And after we got back, we couldn’t find her. She’s not in our cabin and she’s not anywhere in the lodge.” She stopped to take a breath, realizing how scary her words sounded.

  “All right. Let’s just stay calm,” Mrs. Ross said in an even voice.

  But Mr. Hudson, Mr. Degregorio, and Detective McElroy were already on their feet. “We’ll need half the chaperones to search the cabins,” Mr. Hudson said. “I’ll check the barn. Faith, would you check the kitchen and search through the lodge one more time?”

  Mrs. Hudson hurried toward the kitchen, and half of the chaperones went to put on their coats. Natasha
sat down heavily next to her mother.

  Mrs. Ross put her arm around her daughter. “Try not to worry, sweetheart,” she said. “I’m sure Shawn is fine.”

  Molly and Amanda hurried over to the table. “What’s going on?” Molly asked in a low voice.

  “They’re searching all the buildings on the grounds,” Mrs. Ross replied as she stroked Natasha’s hair. “Perhaps she fell asleep and missed dinner.”

  Fifteen minutes later, all of the adults were back in the dining room. Detective McElroy came up to the chaperones’ table.

  “She’s not in any of the buildings,” he said in a low voice. “Mr. D., I need you to call her parents. Explain that we’re not sure where she is, but we’re organizing a search party. Tell them to stay in Brooklyn for now; we’ll call with an update every thirty minutes. Tell them the police are involved and we’re doing everything we can to find her right away.” Detective McElroy turned to the other parents. “Half of you need to stay here—the lodge is home base. Keep the other students calm. No one leaves the lodge, understand? The rest of the chaperones need to serve on the search party. Mrs. Hudson, where’s your phone? I’m going to call the local police.”

  The air in the room charged with tension as the adults went to work.

  “Ohmigosh,” whimpered Amanda. “What if—what if Shawn is out there in this storm, all alone in the cold?” She bit her lip to keep from crying.

  “We’ve got to help with the search party,” Molly said, jumping to her feet. “I want to go now.”

  “Sit down, Molly,” Mrs. Ross said in a voice that was both gentle and firm. “None of the students will be searching outside for Shawn tonight. And the police will probably want to talk to you girls, too, since you’re Shawn’s best friends. I know you’re worried. But we all need to stay calm.” She patted Molly and Amanda’s shoulders.

  Natasha looked at Mrs. Ross gratefully, and, for the first time, was glad her mother had come on the trip.

  An hour later, the areas around Chestnut Hill Farm were swarming with police and rescue volunteers. The police quickly converted the dining hall into search-party central; in the rec room, the students sat together in small groups, talking quietly. No one could believe that Shawn Jordan was missing.