Snow Angel (The Hope Falls Chronicles)
Read Snow Angel (The Hope Falls Chronicles) Online
Authors: Melanie Shawn
Snow Angel
by
Melanie Shawn
Copyright 2013 by Melanie Shawn
Cover Design by Hot Damn Designs
Published by Red Hot Reads Publishing 2013
All rights reserved. This copy is intended for the original purchaser of this book. No part of this may be
used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without permission in writing from Melanie Shawn.
Exceptions are limited to reviewers who may use brief quotations in connection with reviews. No part of
this book can be transmitted, scanned, reproduced, or distributed in any written or electronic form without written permission from Melanie Shawn.
This book is a work of fiction. Places, names, characters and events are either products of the author’s
imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locations, or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Beads of sweat dripped down Lily Sotelo’s back as the corners of the large, heavy cardboard box dug
into her biceps and forearms. Her arms shook as she lifted her knee beneath the massive object for balance
so she could readjust her grip on the awkward, rectangular box. As she set her foot back down, the soles of her sneakers squeaked on the slippery surface. Slowly she navigated her way down the wet concrete steps.
Over the pounding of blood causing Lily’s head to feel like it was going to explode from exertion, she
heard the creak of her landlord-slash-neighbor’s door opening. “Are you sure you don’t need a hand with
that, sweetie?”
“No, Mrs. H, I’ve got it. But thanks so much for offering,” Lily said brightly. She knew if there was
even a hint of stress in her tone Mrs. H would be out of her apartment and “helping” her so fast it would
make her head spin. If that happened, there was a more than likely possibility the elderly woman would fall and break her
other
hip.
“Oh now, of course you don’t need the help of an old lady, but I can call Tim. He would be happy to
carry all those heavy boxes for you,” Mrs. H’s shaky voice said from directly behind Lily.
Great. Mrs. H was on the steps. The wet steps.
“I’ve got it,” Lily managed to grunt out even though she was now struggling to catch her breath from
the exertion.
She loved Mrs. H—adored her, really—but right now Lily just needed to concentrate on making it down
the last flight of steps without breaking her neck. Also, the last thing she wanted her well-meaning landlord to do was call her grandson Tim. He didn’t take
no
for an answer and was creepy with a capital C.
Tim was one of the many reasons that Lily had jumped at the chance to move out of Sacramento when
she had been given the opportunity to choreograph pop superstar Karina Black’s upcoming winter tour.
Relief washed over Lily as she heard the pitter-patter of Mrs. H’s slippers shuffling back inside her
apartment. “Well, all right then. I’m gonna go on in and get out of this rain.” Before closing her door, she added, “Don’t forget to stop by before you leave, sweetie. I’ve got some goodies for you to take on the
road.”
“Okay. I’ll be sure and stop by, Mrs. H,” she promised.
As Lily reached the bottom step, all of the energy she had expended over the last three days suddenly
caught up to her in one fell swoop. Her limbs were heavy and weak. Her head was pounding like a
hammer, and she felt like her eyelids had bricks attached to them.
She paused for a moment and propped the burdensome box against the stucco wall of the apartment
complex. After shutting her eyes and taking in several cleansing breaths, she realized the second wind she
desperately needed was not going to magically rush through her. Although, to be fair, it would more
accurately be like a
tenth
wind at this point.
Lily had spent the weekend at the wedding of Amanda Jacobs and Justin Barnes in Hope Falls—the
small town in the Sierra Nevadas she was now going to be calling home—for the next few months at least.
While she was there, she’d been approached by Karina Black with an out-of-this world amazing job
opportunity.
After returning from the sleepy town two days ago, she’d quit both of her jobs, packed the entire
contents of her life into six boxes that would fit in her Jeep, cleaned her apartment, every nook and cranny
—so she could get her deposit!—and said goodbye to the few friends she had made since she had settled in
Sacramento two years earlier.
Now, she was
tired
. And somewhat second-guessing her choice of making her life-changing decision so abruptly. She could have sub-leased her apartment and not made things so final.
Lily shook her head at that thought. Even though her commitment to Karina only extended through the
tour, which entailed three months pre-production and then three months on the road, she knew she would
not be returning to the Sacramento area after her contract was up. She had already stayed much longer than
she’d ever intended to.
Prior to moving to Sacramento two years ago, she’d spent eight years never staying more than one year
in any given location before moving on. It wasn’t ideal but it had worked. She was still alive.
Pushing the button on her key remote, she popped the back of her Jeep and hoisted her final box inside.
She sucked in a hiss from pain shooting through her as she body tensed and her muscles quivered while
she pushed and maneuvered the container until she was satisfied that it was securely in place. Finally
reaching up and shutting the hatch, she turned and sat on the bumper to take a moment and rest.
Closing her eyes, she sat perfectly still, listening to the tap-tap-tapping of the rain as it landed on the aluminum carport that sheltered her. Slowly her body relaxed as the melodic beat began to lull her. She
allowed herself the luxury to just take a moment and simply…be.
Lily loved rain. She loved the sound, the smell, the feeling it gave her of a fresh start. Every time it
rained, she felt as though it was a cleansing, cathartic experience. A new beginning. The old was washed
away and there was a clean slate.
If there was one thing that had been a constant in her life, it was starting over. She had that down pat.
She could write a book on it. Sell DVDs, t-shirts, bumper stickers.
Moving and starting over on a rainy day seemed like a good omen.
A vibration at her hip snapped her out of her inner musings. Pulling her phone out of her pocket, she
froze when she saw that it was a number she didn’t recognize. Lily made it a strict policy
never
to answer calls from random numbers. It was part of protocol, and she always followed protocol.
But that was before, she reminded herself. This was her new life, and the number displayed had the
same area code of the town she was moving to. Pushing down the sick feeling she got at the appearance of
an unknown number, she forced herself to answer the call.
Because that is what a normal person would do.
“Hello,” her voice wavered.
A concerned woman’s voice came over the line. “Lily, honey, is that you? Are you okay?”
“Yes, this is Lily. Who’s this?” Lily felt a small amount of relief surface. Even though she didn’t know
who the person on the other end of the line was, they at least seemed to have good intentions.
“This is Sue Ann Perkins. I was just calling to confirm that you still wanted the apartment over the café
for the next few days.”
“Oh, yes. Sorry, I will be there tonight.” Lily looked at her watch. “Is nine too late? I got a little bit of a late start.”
“Nine’s just fine. I’ll be here till eleven closing up.”
“Okay. Thanks, Sue Ann.”
“Is everything all right, sweetie? You sound a little shaken up.” Genuine worry laced Sue Ann’s voice.
“I’m fine, just tired.” Lily thought that it was sweet that a person Lily had just met over the weekend
was concerned for her, but she didn’t want to cause anyone to worry.
“Now I’m sure that this goes without saying but make sure that you have chains for your tires. There’s a
storm coming in and I don’t want you to get stuck on the mountain.”
Chains! How could she have forgotten to get chains? Well, she needed to add stopping by an auto parts
store on her way out of town to her to-do list.
“Wow, I’m so glad you mentioned that. Thanks again, Sue Ann. I’ll see you in a few hours.”
“Sure thing. See you in a few. Drive safe, sweetie.”
After hanging up with Sue Ann, Lily stared down at her phone, battling with whether or not to place
the
call. She didn’t want to bug anyone, but she just needed to know that everything was going to be okay.
Biting the inside of her mouth, she pushed her phone back in her pocket then instantly pulled it back
out and scrolled through her contacts. She hit the button and placed the phone to her ear.
The line rang twice. “Agent Stone.”
“It’s Lily.”
“Hey, Lily. Is everything okay?”
“Yeah. I just wanted to double-check that you understood the message I left you yesterday. I’m going to
be relocating.”
“Yes. I called you back. Didn’t you get my message?” Agent Stone’s voice sounded distracted.
“I did. I just wanted to…um…make sure that you knew where I was.”
“I put it down in my notes. But as you know, your case has been closed for almost two years. You’re
file’s not active.”
“I know. I still just wanted you to know.” Lily felt a knot well up in her throat. How could these people
who’d sworn to protect her just be
done
with her?
“Listen, Lily. I know that it’s scary the first few years out, but you have nothing to worry about. If you
want to be on the safe side, just keep your head down and maintain protocol. No reason to take
unnecessary risks.” And with that ominous statement, the line went dead.
Her hand shook as she put her phone back in her pocket and left it there. Lily tried not to let the
overwhelming sensation of being in way over her head envelop her. She would figure all of this out.
It wasn’t that scary. She was just
really
on her own. Completely alone. Vulnerable.
She shook her head to get that thought out of her mind. She couldn’t think like that. Her credo was now
and had been since she was a child to focus on the positive. She was just a normal girl, moving to a new
town to start a new job.
Sure, she had never had a professional job as a choreographer, and true, she hadn’t lived around the snow since she was a kid, but she was sure that she could handle whatever challenges the exciting
experiences may bring.
At least that’s what she was going to keep telling herself.
