Awakening (5 page)

Before I even got over to the table Arie bounded towards me and gave me a great big hug. Usually, I would have been as stiff as a board and very uncomfortable, but for some reason I hugged her right back as if I had done it a million times before and dashed into the coffee line that was getting incredibly long.

I felt Athen coming up behind me in line and wondered if I really could feel him so I turned around and sure enough he was there.

“
So are you going to tell me where we are headed?”

“
Nope.”

“
Alrighty then. Sounds like a plan.”

I got up to the counter to order my drink and noticed the girl paying more attention to Athen than myself. I’m sure I would have to get used to that if by any chance this might actually last longer than 48 hours. I ordered my favorite latte and Athen ordered the same. We wandered to the end of the counter to wait for our drinks. It was standing room only, and I was thankful that Arie and Cyril were already at a table.

My drink was called first so I grabbed it and started my way through the crowd in the tiny coffee shop. The last thing I needed was to spill my latte over someone or myself for that matter. As I got to the table I remembered that I forgot a straw. As if on cue, Athen showed up with a straw in his hand giving me his usual half-lipped smirk that I loved so much.

“
How did you know I used one in a hot drink?”

“
Just a hunch.”

“
Huh, well thank you. The thought of making it through the lines again was a little daunting.”

“
Well, not to rush you guys, but I think we better head on to our next destination.” Arie piped up.

I longed for the table so that I wouldn’t spill my drink on myself, but decided I would have to buck up and figure out how to drink a beverage like most normal people. On our way out of the coffee shop, I noticed the haunting images of the six hikers that were posted on the community bulletin board. It was a bleak reminder of the possible fate of the hikers, and my heart sank a bit. I quietly cursed Karen for placing the crazy thoughts in my head. Thankfully, all it took was a look at Athen to get myself out of the funk. There was no way this family was involved in anything like that.

“
Are any of you guys going to let me in on the secret?” I asked, kind of not wanting the suspense to end. Nobody had ever put this much thought into anything that involved me, especially for me.

“
Absolutely not. You are ours today. Plus, we can’t give you any reason to ditch on us.” Cyril said laughing and grabbing Arie’s hand. At the same moment I could feel Athen’s hand wrap around mine and pull me through the crowd. Thank God for my lid.

We walked over to the center square where the activity groups often met. I was completely puzzled. Athen’s hand squeezed mine, leading me to an area that read Soo Valley.

“
Can you figure it out? Do you know what it is yet?” Arie asked excitedly.

“
I have honestly no idea. I thought I knew everything that was offered, but I honestly have no idea what this could be.”

“
Good.” Athen whispered in my ear and chills ran up my spine.

If only his voice wasn’t so amazingly haunting maybe I could concentrate better.

The guide came out to meet us and, as guides usually are, seemed very upbeat and excited to get us ready for the day’s adventures, whatever they may be.

“
Alright, who is Athen?” The guide asked.

Athen stepped forward and shook the guy’s hand. “I’m and this is Arie, my sister and almost brother-in-law Cyril and the star of the show, Ana.”

“
Great. Good to meet you all. I’m Dave, and I will be taking you to Soo Valley,” He said looking directly at me not lifting his gaze, “Are you ready to head to the van and start the day’s event?”

“
Uh, yeah. Whatever it is.” I peeped up. Athen wrapped his arm around me, and we all shuffled to the parking lot where the van was kept.

“
So, the guide must have thought you had syrup in your hair?” Athen whispered.

“
What are you talking about Athen?” I asked perplexed.

“
Let me guess, you didn’t notice how he was only talking to you?” Athen said laughing.

“
I noticed, but I figured it was because I work in the village or you told them ahead of time it was a surprise for me, the star of the show.” I said sarcastically.

“
Nada. You are so oblivious Ana.” He said squeezing me.

“
Oblivious to what?”

“
How enchanting you are.”

“
Whatever. I’m sure there is a logical explanation for his stare.” As if on cue I slipped on the one piece of ice that hadn’t melted from the heated walkway on the way to the lot. I grabbed Athen on the way down, and thankfully that made it far less painful then it could have been. Of course, I still landed with a thud.

“
Oh my god. Are you ok?” Arie asked not sure whether to laugh or be frightened.

“
Oh yes. I’m totally fine. I thought I wasn’t getting enough attention.” Athen grabbed me back up, and we piled into the van. The van had a rather musty smell, like most of the shuttles around the village from all of the melting snow that fell off of people day after day and all of the wet clothing that saturated the seats from the rides back from whatever fun place that they had ventured to that day.

As the van started up, I caught a glimpse of a conversation between Cyril and Arie. Embarrassment began to make an appearance as I was eavesdropping, but I was intrigued. I couldn’t help myself from wanting to hear more. Athen must have sensed it because he immediately touched my chin, which sent a spark through me. It sounded a little serious, but I couldn’t decipher the topic. The thought of the missing hikers entered my psyche in a flash, only to vanish as soon as he touched me.

“
So, have you figured out where we are headed yet?”

“
Soo Valley.”

“
And what is that?”

“
I have no idea. You asked where not what.” I said trying to give it back to him, instantly dismissing the uneasy feelings that Karen had so thoughtfully placed.

David, our guide, began the usual chitchat with all of us, asking us the typical questions like where were we from and if we liked the village. Thankfully Athen and Cyril did most of the talking, and before I knew it, we were pulling down a long and winding road. It looked like a private road, and was very narrow for the large van we were riding in especially as we went over all of the bumps. The limbs brushed the side and top of the van creating a screeching sound as we drove at a snail’s pace. As I looked deeper into the woods I could see a stately log cabin, which looked like it was in the direction we were heading. The snow was piled up pretty high on the sides of the road as if they had plowed recently.

“
I still can’t figure it out. The suspense is killing me! You have got to tell me.”

“
You’ll find out soon enough.” Arie piped up.

“
Alright, alright.” I complained.

The van circled around to the front of the log cabin and came to a stop. I peered out the window and saw an impressive stone porch with matching pillars leading up to where we were evidently supposed to meet.

“
OK, guys, we are here.” David said as he climbed out of the van. He came over to our side of the van and helped us all out. I could hear dogs barking excitedly in the distance and wondered if they had anything to do with our adventure. I was hoping their idea of good time wasn’t to dress in an assailant costume and be attacked by dogs.

As I was busy thinking these ridiculous thoughts we climbed the stairs to enter the lobby of the log cabin. The warmth escaping hit my cheeks instantly. I looked around and saw a picture perfect seating area nestled near the fire that was throwing off all of the heat I was enjoying. The van was a bit colder than I expected. The couches that caught my attention were a homey, deep-brown leather, with red fleece blankets folded on the back. The bright green shag rug that the coffee table sat on looked like a perfect bed for Matilda.

An older woman with pure white hair stepped out from behind the front counter, introducing herself as Marcy and asked if any of us would like coffee, tea, or hot chocolate before we were to set off for the afternoon. Since I still had no clue what was going on, I opted for the coffee in case we were going out snowshoeing for the day leaving behind all sense of warmth and security. I hoped they weren’t counting on me being super athletic because I would most certainly disappoint. Although it did look like athleticism ran in Athen’s family.

As I reached for my coffee, I heard the back door open, and David, our guide, asked us to follow him. Everyone followed suit, and Athen grabbed my hand and had us linger in the lobby for a moment. I was hoping the older lady had gone back into her office, and in that moment I heard the door click to the back office.

“
Alright Ana, I hope you like this,” Athen said a little apprehensively, “We are going dog sledding and then stopping for a lunch before heading back to the lodge for drinks.”

I looked up at Athen, realizing how hopeful he looked. He genuinely seemed to care about me and about pleasing me. I had no idea why. I couldn’t explain for the life of me why he had chosen me, but I was the luckiest girl ever. I said a little prayer that I wouldn’t disappoint him.

“
Athen, you couldn’t have done anything more perfect.”

He looked down at me. His hands slowly rose up my back and cradled me as his lips touched down to mine. My senses were ignited in a way that I had never thought possible. The only way that I could help myself in this moment was to kiss him back. The warmth of his breath came over me as I held him tight, and the sensations ripped through my body. His lips stung mine like thistles. The electricity running between us was almost painful, but I couldn’t stop being this close to him. It was as if a lifetime had passed between us in the last 24 hours of meeting, and I didn’t want another second to go by without experiencing him throughout me.

“
Yeah, love birds, let’s get a move on it.” I heard a loud thud and saw Arie smack Cyril with her bag. Then I heard her say,” Let them be, Cy. It has been a long time.” The words made no sense to me. Athen must have caught it too because he instantly let go, and we walked down the stairs to the group with me tailing behind wondering what she meant.

I was quickly distracted by the sound of the excited dogs yipping away, and when I looked over to where they were harnessed, their wild beauty literally took my breath away. They were so happy and ready for their freedom on the trails. I knew immediately that I had better get my act together. David, our guide turned musher, was going over all of the features of the harnesses as we were getting situated in our sled.

“
Hey, guys. This is Taylor. He is our other musher, not as good as me, but we take what we can get.” David said laughing.

“
Hi, hope you all enjoy our little adventure today and David no pay for you today.” Taylor said without missing a beat.

“
Guess the owner doesn’t have a sense of humor today.” David said smiling, and Taylor smacked him on the back.

I couldn’t wait for the dogs to take off. I was trying to get the hood of my very fluffy, goose-down jacket situated when I felt Athen pull up my collar without even looking, which made it much easier. I was so thankful to have worn such a warm outfit.

“
All set,” Cyril yelled, “I got my baby tied down before you did, huh Athen?”

“
Not a chance, Cy. I’ve been done for minutes, I was helping Ana get herself organized.”

The quick lurch of the sled alerted me that the adventure was about to begin, as we bolted up the first snow and ice covered path.

“
Oh my God, Athen, this is so awesome.”

“
Are you too cold?” He yelled back.

“
No way! This is spectacular, wonderful… almost as wonderful as the kiss back in the lodge. Thank you so much for both experiences!” I said teasing him.

“
Thank you, Ana.”

I grabbed onto him tightly, nestling my head on his back as our sled ran over the trails. The snow dust picked up in the wind creating a beautiful swirl of light. I saw all the trees pass by us so quickly. The ground drizzled with downed logs in between creating a beautiful scene for me to lock in my memory forever. Everything was glistening and almost alive on the forest floor. I knew I was lucky to be able to take it all in, especially with him. There was nothing more peaceful than being in the mountains with the white, angelic hues dusting everything, casting a beautiful glow all around. I had a quick flash to the night before when Athen first called me on the phone and the beautiful glow that had entered my bedroom. I snapped out of my daydreaming and took a deep breath in noticing the icicles that dangled from the bare tree limbs of the now naked maples that were peeking out from around the evergreens. They added something very special to the landscape and made the view stunning. With each bump, I grabbed onto Athen a little tighter. I was slowly becoming secure in this new world that had come my way very quickly, and I knew Karen was wrong about these people.

I could hear the barking begin as we rounded down the first corner deep into the forest. This was part of Whistler that I never would have seen before if I hadn’t met Athen. I wouldn’t want to share this moment with anyone else. The forest was much more dense. The towering trees let very little light in as we flew over the snow-packed trail making the icicles now harder to spot.