Caught by the Blizzard: A romantic winter thriller (Tellure Hollow Book 1) (15 page)

I recognized Kayla from the bar. Even in my drunken state from that night, I remember thinking she looked like a real party girl. As I realized the full extent of her intoxication, it seemed par for the course. The entire party was filled with people half naked, throwing up, making memories they’d never remember. That’s what your 20s were for, it seemed. When I saw the concern on Liz’s face, I knew something more was up.

We helped her outside, pushing through the crowd to get to the front of the house. I still couldn’t believe how many people were stuffed inside the cabin. I still couldn’t believe how big the cabin was! I remember pulling into Tellure Hollow and looking up at the houses nestled into the mountain, almost in disgust. A few weeks into my loner trip of self-discovery, I found myself shoulder to shoulder with every person in town. Not only that, I was interested in a girl for the first time since Angela had left me. Shock of all shocks, she was into me too. Any question I’d had in my mind about that was erased when she threw herself on me.

Even the memory of it caused my dick to twitch. The way she’d jumped on me was so hot. Liz constantly surprised me, challenged my perception of her. From the moment we met on the bridge to the way she’d tackled the mountain her first day out on the slopes, I knew this girl could keep me on my toes.

I helped guide Kayla to the railing where the crowd thinned out a bit. We sat her down on one of the built-in benches, looking at each other like exhausted parents. The girl kept pawing at me and calling me a mountain man, presumably an inside joke between the two of them.

“She’s completely fucked,” Liz said to me.

“Do you know what she took? She said something about Ashville, right?”

Liz looked pained when I mentioned that, as if she’d hoped I hadn’t heard. “We met in college, in Ashville. One of our…mutual friends…sold a combination of MDMA and ketamine. It was kind of his signature drug. Snowball.” Her mouth twisted as if the words tasted sour.

“Fuck, that’s like an animal tranquilizer, right?” I looked down at Kayla. She was tiny, probably not even a hundred pounds dripping wet and she was taking tranquilizers. “Do we need to get help?”

Liz shook her head. “No, she’s gonna be fine. If anything nasty was gonna happen, it would’ve by now.” She brushed a piece of hair out of her eyes, tucking it behind her ear. “It’s probably a good thing we nabbed her in time. If she kept drinking, it could’ve gotten really bad…”

“You seem to know a lot about this,” I joked. Taking care of a potential drug overdose was a real mood killer so I hoped humor might work. Unfortunately, Liz didn’t respond how I’d expected.

“You have no fucking idea,” she said cryptically, her eyes focused on Kayla.

“I seems I don’t know much,” I replied quickly. It came out with a bit more bite than I’d intended. She glanced up at me questioningly but looked over my shoulder.

“Shit.”

I followed her eyes and my stomach sank. The asshole from the bar was walking towards us. My fist clenched when I saw the smug look on his face. I wondered what Liz might think if I hit him again? Would that ruin my chances of a second date?

“Well, here are the two lovebirds,” he said. I didn’t like the way he was looking at Liz. He seemed like a man split in different parts, his face expressing one thing while his eyes described another. His words said one thing while his tone implied another. The realization put me on edge and in my eyes, it made him unpredictable. “Where have you two been hiding?”

Liz visibly tensed as he drew near, even going so far as to step back against the railing. She ignored his question. “Noah, what did you give her?”

He glanced at me and then down to where Kayla was sitting. She had her Santa hat headband in her hands, picking at the little white puffball on the end. “I haven’t given her anything she hasn’t asked for.”

“Jesus, just tell me so I know what to tell the EMTs if I have to call them.” Her eyes were like ice. The protective hand she kept on Kayla told me something more had happened between these three.

He waved his hand in her face dismissively. “She’ll be fine. I got it from my guy. He’s solid.” He crouched down in front of Kayla, taking her chin in his hand and lifting her face. Liz moved to push him away but he continued speaking. “No, this little one here knows exactly what she’s doing.” Kayla’s eyes flickered open, looking at Noah’s face but then beyond. Her expression lit up like a child being handed a huge ice cream cone. The mood swings she was going through were disturbing enough without this guy manipulating her.

“Rick!” she cooed, pointing over Noah’s shoulder.

I looked up at Liz in confusion and practically watched the color drain from her face. I looked to where Kayla pointed and spotted a man a little older than us standing in the front doorway with the strangest smile. He was broad-shouldered with short cropped black hair. His ears and nose told the story of a dozen fights. If Noah had made her tense, this guy made it seem like she wanted to crawl out of her skin.

Kayla slowly climbed to her feet and ran over to him on wobbly legs. She fell into his arms with a happy squeal. “Ricky’s here! Liz look, it’s Rick.” He kissed her tenderly on the top of her head, his eyes fixed on Liz.

I definitely felt like the outsider in this reunion. I struggled to make sense of what was happening. What annoyed me most was Noah seemed to be in on it, the realization immediately raising my hackles. He stepped back as Rick approached. He still had Kayla in his arms but was walking slowly towards us. Liz gripped the railing behind her and I wondered for a moment if she was going vault herself over it like the snowboarders from earlier.

“Look Liz, it’s Rick,”

I felt frozen in place, not knowing if I should step in and protect her. Danger rolled off this guy in waves and as yet, he hadn’t seemed to notice me. Maybe I could jump him before he got to her?

“What the hell are you doing here?” Liz said through clenched teeth. “How did you get out? How the fuck did you find me?”

“Does it matter, Beth? I’m here now.” Even with Kayla hanging off him like a child, he still moved with menace.

Liz shook her head. “I should’ve known.”

Liz reached out and took Kayla’s hand, speaking to her in a soft voice. “Hey sweetie, why don’t you come with me real quick? I’ve got something to show you, okay?” In her highly suggestible state, Kayla immediately forgot the pile of muscle named Rick and blinked at her.

“Oh yeah? That’s awesome, let’s go!”

When she finally looked at me, the fear was vivid in her expression. I might not have known exactly what was going on, but I knew that look wasn’t good. I fell in behind as she pushed through the crowd back into the house. I chanced a glance over my shoulder and saw Noah and Rick shaking hands like they were old friends.

Liz shoved through without apology, knocking people to the side like her life depended on it. I did my best to keep up but was bounced back and forth a few times. Panic rose in my chest when I lost sight of her, but I knew from the general direction, she was heading back to her bedroom. When I got to the door, it was locked tight.

I knocked softly. “You need any help in there?”

“We’re okay, just give us a second, okay?” Liz called out. I heard her come closer, the doorknob twisting in my hand as she unlatched the door. She opened it a fraction and peeked at me through the gap. “I’m so sorry about this. I had no idea—” Her eyes went wide and I felt a hand slap my shoulder. Liz slammed the door as I spun, coming face to face with Rick for the first time.

“Hey buddy, how’s it going?” I tried to say casually. The guy had a couple inches and several dozen pounds of muscle on me. Skiing might be great for cardio and a muscled physique, but it doesn’t build too much strength. This guy looked like he’d been sculpted in the prison yard.

“Good, good. Mind letting me through?” he said trying to push me to the side with one hand. I forced myself further in front, hating that I had to look up slightly to meet his eyes. Noah stood to the side with the smarmiest smile on his face, looking back and forth like it was a tennis match.

“Ah, see, I don’t think Liz wants you in there, so…” I tried to sound non-plussed, keep the confrontation low key.

“I don’t think you’re in any position to tell me what Beth wants.” His eyes darkened and he ran his tongue along the edge of his front teeth.

“Well, given that this is Liz’s house and you’re not really a welcome guest here—”

“Actually,” Noah interrupted, “I own this house and as far as I’m concerned, if these two are uncomfortable with you being here, I’ll put you up in a room myself.” He clapped Rick on the back. “Plus, you brought the sickest shit to the party, so you are in my good book anyway. Fuck, man, I’m so happy I called you! You’re definitely hired.” Rick shot him a squinted look.

He’d backed me against the door, so when Liz whipped it open, I nearly tumbled into the bedroom. She pulled her jacket shut with one hand, latching onto my arm with the other. She stared Rick down before turning to me. I could see the fake confidence pinned to her face.

“Can you help me with her? I think I need to get out here for a bit.” I glanced inside and saw Kayla splayed out on the bed, looking totally out of it.

“Anything you want,” I nodded to her. “Can you get her up?”

“Yeah, probably. She weighs nothing.”

I stood with my back to the room, blocking the doorway. Rick and Noah were laughing to each other. “It’s funny, must be the thin mountain air or something. She could take a lot more back home,” Rick said with a chuckle.

“Oh, she can still take plenty,” Noah replied grabbing his crotch. Rick glanced at him, not entirely approving of the comment. Noah wilted a little under his gaze. They had a definite bad guy, sidekick thing going on.

I heard the girls having a small argument behind me and I mentally urged them on. Both these guys seemed a bit unstable and I didn’t trust my temper around them. Noah wasn’t going to be an issue but Rick looked like he could handle himself. Liz tapped me on the shoulder and gestured for me to take Kayla’s other side. She felt like a rag doll and was babbling quietly to herself.

For a moment, it seemed like he wasn’t going to let us pass. He got in my face, doing his best to intimidate me, but at this point I was ready to stand up to anyone to keep these girls safe. He was so close I could smell the beer on his breath, but he let us through.

My heart thumped like crazy as we weaved back out the front door and down the slippery steps. Liz started to panic when she realized how many cars were parked behind their Jeep. The stress of the situation was obviously becoming too much for her.

“Shitty shit, I can’t believe any of this. Why are there so many people?”

I kept my voice low and calm. “I got here late and parked down way below. I doubt anyone is behind me, if you want me to go grab it and come back up?”

She grabbed the arm that I had wrapped around Kayla, panic filling her eyes. “No, it’s fine. We’ll come with you.” She glanced over her shoulder when we reached the bottom step and sure as shit, there was Rick watching us leave. It was like having a sniper’s sight on the back of my head. I was thankful I’d parked far enough away he wouldn’t be able to see the make or color.

We trudged down the hill, slipping a little on the ice and reached my truck. I helped lift Kayla inside the cab, putting her between us. Her head rolled onto her shoulder, a soft snore escaping her lips. As I let the engine warm up, I glanced over at Liz. She had her hands pressed together at her mouth and was breathing into them, not for heat, but as if she were staving off a panic attack. All she needed was the brown paper bag.

I leaned forward and put a hand on her knee, making her jump. She looked at me, eyes wide in the glowing green interior lights. As much as I wanted an explanation for everything, I knew now wasn’t the time. “Do you want to just drive around for a bit or maybe grab something to eat? It isn’t too late, the diner might—”

“Can we go to your place?”

My stomach flipped at the thought of bringing a girl home, even if she had a passed out friend attached and was running from No Neck back there. “Yeah, absolutely.” I yanked the car into gear and headed back into town. My mind was a jumble. Adrenaline still pumping from the confrontation, my arousal piqued from Liz sitting in my lap, I chuckled to myself. It earned a sideways glance from Liz, who seemed to be calming down the further we drove from the cabin.

“Sorry, it’s really nothing,” I said, meeting her eyes briefly before returning to the road. “It occurred to me that I came here to get a little peace and quiet. I didn’t expect anything like this to happen in boring old Tellure Hollow.”

“No shit.” Her voice was quiet, barely above a whisper. I felt instantly guilty that I’d even laughed, especially before I knew the real story behind this guy. The rest of the short trip was silent.