He located the sleeping bags, and after shaking them out to make sure they didn’t have any uninvited guests, he spread two of them out on the floor in front of the fire. He picked her up, laid her on the sleeping bag, and then opened up another one and covered her with it. He removed his own boots and outerwear, and then sat down next to her.
He let his eyes travel over her still face, seeing the girl she’d been in the woman she’d become. She was gorgeous, her hair was tangled with dirt, leaves, and he thought about trying to comb it out, but just then she started to stir.
Gracie came awake to the feeling of warmth on her face, but her back was freezing cold. She attempted to switch positions, but her leg wouldn’t move and the more she struggled, the more pain she felt.
“Easy there, Grace,” Mason called to her, laying a gentle hand on her shoulder to keep her in place. “You’ve injured your knee, but I can’t tell how badly…”
“The ACL is tore,” she murmured, opening her eyes and gazing up into the face of the man who was both familiar and a stranger to her. She opened her eyes more fully, and took in her surroundings. They were in some sort of cabin, and while it didn’t look very sophisticated, it was dry and the heat from the fire was miraculous, considering she’d thought she was going to freeze to death.
“Mason?” she murmured, wanting to make sure she wasn’t just imagining him.
“Yeah, sugar. It’s me. I almost didn’t recognize you. You’ve changed quite a bit since I last saw you.”
Gracie gave him a half smile, “You haven’t seen me for eight years. You’ve changed as well.” But not so much that I didn’t immediately recognize you. Still the same little scar on his chin from pretend sword fighting with Kaillar when you were eight. The same dark blue eyes that seemed to see right into her very soul. The hair that always looked like it needed a good combing.
“You cut your hair,” Mason murmured.
Gracie reached up a hand and touched her short strands, “Medical school was tough enough without having to take care of my hair thirty minutes a day.”
Growing up, Gracie had never cut her hair. When she’d left Silver Springs, it had reached to just below her waist. She’d loved her long hair, but after getting into medical school, it became a hindrance she didn’t need. She’d donated the long locks to a local cancer society that used donated human hair to make wigs for cancer patients.
“Medical school? I heard a rumor that you were talking to Doc Matthews.” He watched her carefully, wanting the rumor to be true.
Gracie nodded her head and then winced, “Ouch!”
“You bumped your head pretty good back there. What were you thinking, trying to scale down the cut wall in a snow storm?” Mason allowed just a hint of anger to creep into his voice.
Gracie blushed, “Firstly, it wasn’t snowing when I started down. Secondly, I’m an experienced climber. That wall should have been a piece of cake, but I didn’t think about there being ice in the crevices. Free climbing isn’t my forte, I’ll admit, but if I hadn’t lost my grip on a crevice full of ice, I would have been fine.”
“You’re lucky I found you.”
“I know that. My friends…”
“Your friends are fine. Kaillar took them back down to the ranger station, and then was going to make sure they arrived at Sarah’s safe and sound.”
Gracie relaxed and shut her eyes for a moment, the effort of staying awake causing her head to throb painfully. “Thank God. I really was trying to help. They didn’t understand the danger of getting caught on the mountain in a snowstorm, and I was hoping to call for help while they took the easier route down. I thought if I could get someone to come up and help us, we could all get down before the storm descended on the mountain.”
“That didn’t quite work out like you planned it. Did it?” Mason asked, no judgment in his voice.
Gracie looked at him, “What were you doing up on the mountain?”
“My brothers and I are the search and rescue first responders for the county.”
“Your brothers are all still in Silver Springs?” she asked in surprise.
“Yeah.”
“What about your uncle?” she asked. She’d always liked their Uncle Jed, and he’d always treated her with the utmost respect, and had expected his nephews to do the same. It was one of the first differences between Mason and other boys she’d noticed upon leaving Silver Springs. Mason had always treated her as a lady, and never did anything that could be considered rude or vulgar around her. At med school, she’d met plenty of guys who didn’t care that she was a female. They’d engaged in vulgarity just to see her reaction, something she’d been hoping would go away once she got out of high school. It had been her experience that many boys never grew out of that particular character defect.
“My uncle passed away a few years ago,” he told her softly.
Gracie felt tears spring to her eyes, “I’m sorry. I know he was very close to all of you.”
Mason nodded and then he asked, “What about your parents?”
Gracie swallowed and looked away for a moment. How do I tell him about my dad and his mom? She knew that no one in Silver Springs was aware of what had transpired. Part of her wanted to tell him what she knew so that there would be no secrets between them going forward. Another part of her wanted to forget that she knew anything – but ignorance wasn’t bliss. As she’d so clearly found out in her own life.
“My dad died a little while ago. My mom is travelling with a group of her friends on a cruise around the world.”
“Wow! I’m sorry to hear about your dad. He never did seem to like me much.”
Gracie chose to say nothing, not wanting to lie to him. Her father hadn’t really liked any of the teenagers in the area. The Donnelly boys had just had the misfortune of being their mother’s children, making them even less likable to her father.
Changing the subject, she looked at her surroundings and asked, “So, where are we?”
Mason gave her a look. He appeared to be watching her for panic or something else. She wasn’t sure, but before she could ask, he told her, “One of the line shacks on the mountain. They’re mostly used by the sheep herders during the summer months, but also by hikers and others who miscalculate and get stuck on the mountain overnight.”
“Does anyone know where we are?” she asked, just starting to realize the peril she’d been in.
“I spoke to Justin a bit ago. He knows where we are, and he’ll send a chopper for us as soon as the storm clears out.”
“Tomorrow?” Gracie asked, her knee starting to talk to her quite loudly. Her head was pounding and the nausea had returned. She didn’t want to complain, but she felt horrible.
Mason watched her and then shrugged, “I’m not going to lie to you. Maybe. How’s the leg?”
Gracie gave a rough laugh, “To be honest, it hurts. Bad.”
“I brought along a first aid kit. Want to take a look, and see if there’s anything in there you can use?”
Gracie nodded her head, “Please.” Even some over-the-counter pain medication would give her a small amount of relief. “I hate to ask, and actually, can’t believe I’m saying this, but is there something around here that could be used as an ice pack?”
Mason chuckled, “Yeah, I can’t believe you asked that either. I’ll find you something, and there’s more than enough snow out there to keep you in ice packs all night long.”
Chapter 5
Mason found an empty plastic bag, and stepped outside to fill it with fresh snow. He also grabbed the first aid kit from his pack by the door. He took an extra moment, and looked up at the cloudy sky. “Thank you for helping me to find her.”
Mason had gotten them down to the line shack in record time, and then called Justin to give him an update. It was the best he could do for her at the moment, and he was more relieved than he cared to admit that she’d regained consciousness.
Filling the bag with fresh
snow, he stepped back inside the shack and shut the door, barring the wind from coming inside.
He walked over to her, gently moved the blanket lying over her legs, and laid the makeshift ice bag on her knee, “That should help some.”
“Thanks.” Gracie blushed, having just realized that someone had removed her outer clothing. Since there was no one else around, she knew that someone had to be Mason. She’d taken a closer look at her surroundings while he’d been getting the snow, and she’d easily identified her clothing lying in a pile a short distance away. It was caked with mud and very wet.
“I’ve got some over-the-counter painkillers if you think they might help?” he offered, opening up the first aid kit and pulling out two different bottles. He handed them to her and after she made her choice, he pulled his pack over and pulled out a canteen of water. “Here, this should help wash those down.”
“You’re a regular Boy Scout, aren’t you?” Gracie asked, thankful for everything he did have.
“That’s me. I even have a few protein bars and some freeze-dried soup.” He didn’t have to tell her that Silver Springs had never had a Boy Scout Troop while they were growing up; she knew that.
“Freeze-dried soup?” Gracie asked. “Explain to me how that is supposed to work.”
Mason smiled, “I’ll go one better and fix us both some.” He rummaged through his pack again and came out with a small tin container, two foil packages, and his water canteen. He poured some water into the tin and then set it near the fire. He kept an eye on Gracie as he got the packages ready for the water, not liking how pale her face was; or the fact that she seemed to be having trouble keeping her eyes open.
“Hey, you still with me?” he asked softly, watching her eyes flutter open as she turned her head to look at him. She gave him a small smile, and he grinned back, “You wouldn’t want to miss this culinary delight I’m cooking up.”
Gracie pushed herself up a bit, so that she was sitting, rather than lying down, grimacing at the new pains that made themselves known. “Did you ever learn to cook?”
Mason grinned, “You still remember Home Ec, huh?”
Gracie grinned, “I don’t think any of us will ever forget how you almost burned down the school. Mrs. Peterson even retired at the end of the school year.”
“Not because of me,” Mason reminded her, remembering how everyone had teased him about being the reason the matriarch of the middle school had decided to move to Florida and play golf, rather than try to teach pre-adolescent boys how to work an oven.
Gracie nodded, “I’m just teasing you. So, I imagine lots of things have changed in Silver Springs?”
Mason grabbed a glove and added some of the hot water to each foil package, using a plastic spoon to stir them up before folding over the tops. “They just need to sit for five or so minutes, and they’ll be ready to eat. And, some things have changed, but not as many as you might think.”
Mason watched her face and then stated, “Are you seriously considering taking over Doc’s practice?”
Gracie nodded, “Yeah, I am. I’ve always wanted to return, and now that I don’t have to fight my dad, I’m really thinking about doing what I want to do.”
Fight her dad? What’s that mean? Mason didn’t ask the question, but echoed her statement, “Coming to live in Silver Springs is what you want to do?”
Gracie nodded, “It is.” There were so many things she wanted to ask. And say, but the version of Mason sitting across from her was one she didn’t really know. She didn’t want to assume he was still the same as the fourteen year old boy who’d given her the first romantic kiss of her life. The same boy she’d swore she loved, and that they would be together forever. They’d been young, and after her father had uprooted his family and moved them away from Silver Springs, everyone had assumed she would forget all about him. But she hadn’t.
All through high school and then college, she’d compared every boy who asked her out to Mason. None of them were ever able to measure up, so she’d finally just given up on having a social life that included dating a member of the opposite sex.
She’d thrown herself into her studies, joined a few service organizations, and put finding love on the back burner. Her heart had been given to Mason, and when she’d first thought about returning to Silver Springs, she’d found a hope that somewhere, she might find her heart there as well as her future.
*****
“I’m heading down to Sarah’s, do you want to come along?” Justin asked Jessica. Kaillar had called in a few minutes earlier to say that the two women hikers were safely ensconced at Sarah’s and seemed to be suffering no lasting effects. At least, not physical ones.
“No, I’m good right here where it’s warm. Want me to make dinner while you’re gone?” Jessica asked.
Justin smiled and then quickly shook his head, “No, I’ll throw a pot of chili together when I get back. Won’t take that long to heat through and dinner will be ready.” By Jessica’s own admission, she couldn’t boil water without burning it. There was no way Justin wanted her using the lodge’s gas stove with nobody around to put out the fire.
“Are you sure?” She gave him a look that was part teasing and part relief.
“Positive. I’ll be back with Kai in a bit.” He kissed her on the forehead, feeling blessed to have her in his life. He knew that she still had things to work out, most of them between God and herself, but for the first time, he really felt positive that they had a future together.
Justin headed down the mountain, using the alone time to thank God for helping Jessica deal with her lack of faith. Seeing her walk into the church this morning had been like Christmas come early. “Guess I have a lot of things to be thankful for this week.”
He arrived at Sarah’s, and found Kaillar speaking with one of the women named Melanie. The other woman was sitting near a window, her arms wrapped around herself in a self-protective gesture, as she watched the snow fall outside.
“She okay?” he asked Sarah quietly.
“Don’t know the answer to that one yet. The friend said she’s doing okay now, but I guess she started to slip on their way down, and Kaillar caught her. She freaked out; acting completely terrified, and has been withdrawn and quiet since they got here.”
Justin watched her for another moment, and then joined Kaillar and Melanie. After the introductions were made, Justin asked Melanie, “What’s up with your friend?”
Melanie looked at Becca with compassion in her eyes and smiled sadly, “She was attacked a while back, and I think when your brother grabbed her to stop her fall, it was just similar enough to her attack that it caused all of those old feelings of terror to rise to the surface. She’s never dealt with them in my opinion, and it was just a matter of time before something like this triggered a bad reaction.”
Seeing how concerned the brothers were, she hurried to assure them, “Don’t worry. When Gracie gets here, she’ll know what to do, and can medicate her if necessary. She’s had to talk her down before.”
“Talk her down?” he queried, his eyes on the young woman who seemed to be trying to make herself as small as possible.
“She gets panic attacks sometimes. I think she’d get caught up in her head. Starts making things out to be more than they are, and then they spiral out of control.”
Justin shared a look with Kaillar and then turned to address Melanie. “What happens if Gracie doesn’t talk her down?”
Melanie’s face stiffened, “The last time she had an attack, they had to take her to the ER and put her under. She woke up, tied to the rails of the bed, and under a seventy-two hour psychiatric hold. She’s not crazy, just hurting. Gracie will make it all better, though.”
Justin cleared his throat and told her quietly, “She’s not coming down off the mountain tonight.”
Chapter 6
Justin wished he had better news, but he didn’t. Plunging ahead, he told her, “Gracie injured her knee, and is going
to need a chopper or medivac whenever this storm clears.”
“Rats!” Melanie looked at her friend and then asked, “Is there a way for her to talk to Gracie tonight? Maybe that would be enough to keep her from imploding.”
Justin looked at Kaillar and shrugged, “We could try the radio from down here. Not sure if the signal is strong enough, but it couldn’t hurt.”
Kaillar nodded and then grabbed the radio from Justin, “Let me, since it seems I’m the reason she’s shut down. I was only trying to help.”
Kaillar slowly approached the young woman, trying not to notice her strawberry blonde hair, or the little pixie face that looked so sad and alone. He had the strangest urge to wrap her in his arms and protect her, but he pushed it away. Touching her was the last thing she needed.
“Hey, Becca? I was wondering if you might want to talk to your friend for a minute or two. It seems that Gracie hurt her knee in a fall, and isn’t going to make it back down the mountain tonight.”
“What?! But she has to come back down. It’s too dangerous up there, she’ll freeze to death and then…”
“Whoa!” Kaillar held up his hands, stalling her from rising from the chair. “Becca, my brother’s with her and they’re inside one of the line shacks. They’re warm and dry and out of the elements. When the storm clears, we’ll fly up and get them. Now, would you like to talk to her?”
Becca slowly nodded her head, and then watched with wide eyes as Kaillar turned the radio on, “Hey, Mason! You copy?”
“Kaillar? Your signal’s not very strong. What’s up?”
“One of Gracie’s friends needs to speak to her for a minute. Is she able to talk?”
“Sure. Just a minute.”
“Becca?” Gracie’s voice came through the radio loud and clear a few seconds later.
Silent tears streamed down Becca’s face, “Gracie, are you all right?”
Three Brothers Lodge - The Complete Series Box Set Page 13
