Mistletoe & Kisses (30 page)

Chapter Seven

ONCE WE GOT back to our suite, we discussed details of the remainder of the vacation.  We had planned, two nights from now, to open presents.  It would be just like Christmas, except there would be no Santa.  The kids were excited.  We told Chuck we weren’t sure about other things, like if we wanted to take advantage of the slopes or check out any of the nightlife.  We were here as a family and trying to treat this as a home away from home, so it was likely that we wouldn’t do much more other than hang around the suite, doing family-oriented things.

Our place really was huge as far as temporary accommodations went.  Chuck agreed to sleep on the foldout couch in the living room.  The bathroom off of Gracie and the kids’ room had two doors, so Chuck could access it anytime without going through the bedroom area.

Once we were done talking, I brought my laptop out of the bedroom and plugged it in, sitting at the kitchen table.  I needed to show Chuck all the strange stalker activity that had started online and continued to plague me in the real world.  Maybe he’d be able to see or figure out something that we hadn’t.

We spent a couple of hours with me pulling up my various social media.  I had some pieces of information saved in my documents, because I knew a lot of those things could disappear at any time.  If any one of those creeps got the idea I was investigating them, I was certain they would delete not only any of their contact with me, but I could even see a few of them deleting their entire accounts.  I wanted to be safe and keep the information, because I never knew when it would pay off.

Chuck asked to get on my computer, and I let him.  He did some searches and other things, and I grew tired of watching what he was doing, so I joined Chris and Hayley on the living room floor.  Both kids were watching the flames blazing in the fireplace.  Hayley crawled over and curled up in my lap, so I moved us to the couch.  Gracie came in and started playing cars with Chris, while Hayley continued watching the fire, growing drowsy.  I turned my head toward the window and watched the snow continue to fall.  It really was beautiful.

After a few minutes, I heard Brad playing a few chords in our bedroom.  He was on his acoustic guitar, so I could hear it better than I would have if he’d been using his electric unplugged.  It was a driving riff, and I could already imagine what it would sound like electrified, with Nick banging on a snare and his double bass with a little cymbal thrown in.  Intrigued, I stood up and lay Hayley down on the couch, grabbing a pillow and resting it against her side to keep her from rolling off the edge.  Then I walked in the bedroom and stood just inside the doorway so I could listen to Brad’s newest inspiration.

It wasn’t long, though, that he noticed me and looked up and smiled.  “That’s really good, honey.  What inspired it?”

He shook his head.  “I don’t know.  You and Chuck were looking at all that stuff and I felt this rage…and impotence…and then this song.”

I smiled and walked the rest of the way over to him to where he sat on the edge of the bed.  I sat next to him and stroked his cheek.  “Try not to worry. 
I’m
the one who’s supposed to worry.”

“It’s hard not to, Val.  There’s not much I can do.  If anything happened to you—”

“Don’t say that.  Chuck’s here.  I trust him.”

“Yeah.  Me, too.  He seems to be a good guy.”

“Hey.”  He looked back up from the guitar strings.  “I love you, Brad Payne.”

He wrapped his hand around my neck and kissed me on the forehead.  “I love
you
, Valerie Payne, and that’s why this shit’s really starting to get to me.”

That was when I realized I’d been way too vocal about my fears regarding the stalker.  I was starting to affect my normally calm, rational husband, making him worry too.  I needed to be outwardly composed, no matter how I felt on the inside, because if I was affecting Brad this way, I had no idea what my nerves were doing to my kids.  I touched my lips to his and then said, “Don’t let it.  Everything’s going to be okay.  All right?”

He frowned.  “Yeah.”

“I’m going to try to chill.  Now that we have Chuck here, everything’s going to be fine, right?”

Brad smiled.  “That’s the theory.  That’s why I pay those guys what I do.”

“Then quit worrying.”  I stood and took a deep breath.  “I know it seems silly, but I really want to take a walk.  The snow’s beautiful.  We never get snow like this at home.”

“It’s colder than shit out there, Val.”

“Yeah, I know.”

Brad knew better than to argue with me.  Once I got a bright idea, that was all it took.  He always had a few tricks up his sleeve, though.  “Why don’t you grab your guitar instead?”

Oh…yeah.  Okay, so a walk could wait till the next day.  “Don’t mind if I do.”  Making music with Brad would never get old.

* * *

The evening had been wonderful, and I almost forgot about why Chuck was even with us.  We decided to go out to dinner that night, and even though Chuck was “on duty” (and I could tell—he was quite vigilant), he managed to have fun with us, too.

One thing he insisted upon was getting all our cell numbers and having us add his number to our phones as well.  “You never know when you’ll need it, and I’d rather not regret not giving it to you later.”

The night was uneventful and I began to feel a little relief.  We talked with Chuck about staying while we were in Beaver Creek, but we couldn’t decide if we would part ways when we journey to the western slope to visit Brad’s family.  We wanted to see what happened the rest of our stay in Beaver Creek.  While here, though, he was going to be a permanent fixture, and I was glad that he’d joined us, because I was sleeping easier.  I just felt more relaxed all the way around.

The sun was out the next morning, making the snow look even lovelier than it had the day before.  Brad hooked up the Xbox to the TV and he and Chris were playing after breakfast while Hayley watched.  Gracie asked if she could take a couple of hours off.  She wanted to walk to Starbucks for a caramel macchiato and then she might explore a few of the shops, even though she didn’t plan on spending any money.  Chuck advised her to be careful and more aware of her surroundings than usual and she promised she would.  She had her cell phone with her in case she needed anything.

I decided to take the walk I’d put off from the day before.  I thought Gracie had the right idea to get some fresh air, even if it was crisp, and a little sunshine.

Brad was okay with it only if Chuck accompanied me, and—of course—I hadn’t planned to do it any other way.  I wouldn’t have felt safe doing it by myself…but I hadn’t realized how stressed out I’d been.  Communing with nature always managed to make me feel grounded, and we were in the perfect place for that.

I kissed the kids and Brad and then bundled up in my coat and gloves, tucking a room card, little folding map, and my cell phone in the deep right-hand pocket.  Chuck said, “Laters, gators” to the kids, rolling his eyes and hanging his tongue out of his mouth, making Chris giggle before my son returned to the serious business of beating Brad at the videogame they were playing.

We made our way down the hall and descended the stairs to the main level.  Chuck asked, “This is totally up to you, but let me know.  Would you rather I walk beside you like a companion or hang back?”

I shrugged.  “It doesn’t really matter to me as long as you’re nearby.  I have to tell you it makes me feel better knowing you’re close.”

“It won’t hurt my feelings either way.  Some bodyguards stay back as a general rule and others even stay out of sight.  I’m getting paid either way and I’m a friendly guy, but it won’t kill me if you don’t want to be friends.”

I laughed.  “It’s all good.  I just want to be outside for a while, and I really do feel better with you here.”

“Good.  Lead the way.”  I pulled the folding map out of my pocket.  It was one the resort had displayed in the lobby and I’d grabbed it one of the times we’d passed through.  It showed all the various hiking trails around the area and described their level of difficulty and length.  I didn’t know that hiking a trail in the winter was such a brilliant idea, but I wanted to explore the area a bit.  I didn’t want to check out the village; I didn’t want to experience any manmade beauty, because I’d been surrounded by it the past couple of days in our room.  Instead, I wanted to enjoy what nature had to offer.

I even planned to snap a few photos with my phone.

When I saw how deep the snow was where the paths hadn’t been cleared, I rethought my stance.  My boots weren’t made for hiking in that much snow.  I could still walk the sidewalks and along the road, though, and see the perfection the earth had to offer.

The sky was a light blue and I looked up the mountain toward the ski trails.  The white-capped peaks were breathtaking, and I realized there wasn’t a cloud in the sky.  It was as though we’d gotten all the clouds out of the way during the storm the day before.

I decided to begin my journey by following the trail the resort had made along the building up to the main road that led to the main part of the village, the one we’d walked the first day we’d been here.  That path had been cleared by the employees.  Not only had the snow been scraped off but it had been salted and was down to blacktop.

The air was crisp and I loved the feel of drawing it in through my nose and down into my lungs.  This kind of cold made me feel alive.  No, I didn’t want to be in it for a long time and I definitely would appreciate the warm fire inside later, but it felt like what I needed.  It felt cleansing.

I was feeling a lot more relaxed with Chuck along.  I wouldn’t have thought his presence would have brought me such peace, but it did, and so I was able to enjoy myself.  He even seemed to pick up on my need for quiet reflection, instead keeping his eyes peeled and his senses alert.  I was pretty sure he hadn’t as yet seen anything suspect, but I trusted that if anything was out of the ordinary, he would notice it right away.

He followed me up into the village, not talking but keeping his eyes open.  Beaver Creek was a lot bigger than I’d thought at first, and I knew I’d get plenty of exercise.  I hadn’t really gotten a good idea the first night when we’d had the kids with us.  I could again feel the difference in altitude, and so I was moving more slowly than I would have back home.

I stopped to look again at the creek that flowed through town—well, it must have during the spring and summer, because right now, it was frozen over.  I stood on the bridge and then decided to follow the walkway that went further into the village.  We’d passed it by our first evening here, but it had been twilight and we’d been eager to find food.  Today, in the bright sunlight, I could really appreciate what I was looking at.  Shops stood on both sides of the creek, and I marveled at the beauty of nature, surrounded by manmade architecture.

Nature had the manmade shit trumped, but it was a sight to see.

I took out my phone and started snapping pictures.  Chuck was more than patient, simply standing beside me and moving when I did.  If nothing else, his presence alone was sure to intimidate any freaks out there considering doing anything criminal.

I saw Chuck pull his phone out of the pocket of his heavy jacket.  He looked at it for a second.  “I’m sorry,” he said, but he didn’t turn around or leave.  He
did
pick up the call, though.  I was going to listen in, wondering what could be more important than my safety, when I felt my own phone vibrate in my hand.

I lifted it up to see that I had a text notification, but I had to close the camera function, because the text message was just a picture and that picture was tiny.  I opened my texts, and it was a phone number I didn’t recognize…or I should say my phone didn’t recognize it.  It was just a number.  And I confirmed that there was no actual text message—it was just a picture.  That picture was of
me
…me and Chuck, and it was of us leaving the hotel this morning, not even a half an hour ago.

I felt a violent shiver charge down my spine as my whole body went into panic and alert mode.  I looked up and turned around, scanning the people I could see.  But no one was just standing around—everyone was going
somewhere
, huddled in coats and gloves, with a destination in mind.  As my eyes scanned a second time, I moved more slowly, searching for still bodies around corners or far off.  But as my search became fruitless, I realized Chuck was dealing with something a little suspect as well.  I tuned back into him.  He was looking at me but he said to the other person on the phone, “We’ll be right there.”  He hung up the call and said, “Gracie’s over at Starbucks right now and she’s afraid to leave.  I told her we would come get her.”  I began following him up the hill.  I thought I remembered where the Starbucks was too, because I’d noticed it the first night we’d been there, walking around, taking everything in.  “It’s this way, right?”

“Yeah, I think so.  What happened exactly?”

“I couldn’t quite get it out of her.  She was a little hysterical and said she wasn’t going to leave unless we came to get her.”

So it would remain a mystery until we got there.  It was just a few minutes, and we turned another corner to find the Starbucks tucked into a small somewhat enclosed area where it seemed to dominate its surroundings.  When we walked inside, Gracie was seated at one of the small tables nestled against a wall.  The terror on her face seemed to fade a little when she saw us, and she stood.  “Thank God you’re here.”