Total pages in book: 146
Estimated words: 141951 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 710(@200wpm)___ 568(@250wpm)___ 473(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 141951 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 710(@200wpm)___ 568(@250wpm)___ 473(@300wpm)
Not loudly.
The soft curve of his smile told her that he had heard what she said, nonetheless. His hand flexed around hers, a silent confirmation that he had taken in the information, before his profile swung the other way so he could take another look at the quiet town down below.
The place that made her.
And hurt her along the way, too.
“Another thirty minutes, maybe?” Millard asked at the front. “How are you doing back there, boss?”
At the question, Lucas grunted some form of a reply, and waved a hand. Millard, satisfied, looked ahead at the horizon and the rolling hills of mountainous tree-topped terrain they still had to cross.
“Hell of a trip,” the pilot noted in the comms. “A beautiful day for this, huh?”
It really was.
Delaney had never fully realized or appreciated the vastness and raw beauty of her home province quite like she did in that moment as the chopper cut through the sky. There was nothing quite like it.
*
Even though Lucas had said the pilot could land the chopper just about anywhere as long as he had flat ground, she didn’t actually understand that he meant it. Quite literally. Millard used a field of juvenile fur trees that seemed to stretch on for miles with a patch cleared that connected a snowy trail to the main road to drop the helicopter down.
By far, the freakiest part of the whole flight.
She had been way too distracted by the landing chopper and praying that the snow-covered ground below looked as flat as it seemed, to pay attention to the surrounding area. She thought she knew Birch Ridge quite well. A rural trek deep in the peninsula covered in thick, dense forest with few inhabitants and quite a ways from any main towns. At some point in the Ridge, the telephone poles even stopped lining the roads and the government plows didn’t clear the snow or even sand.
Were they that far out?
She couldn’t tell.
In the summer, or any warmer months, the place could be a haven of nature away from the normality people found in their communities. Rolling fields for as far as the eye could see allowed ATVs to go full tilt for kilometers on end.
She only saw white.
Snow-covered trees and glistening, icy fields for days.
Blustering billows from the chopper’s spinning blades didn’t help.
Millard kept the machine running, proclaiming the engine would run better hot as he directed the passengers in the back to remove their headsets. A clue it was time for Delaney to shed the quilt, unbuckle from the five-point harness keeping her safely in her seat, and help with the couple of bags loaded into the back.
“You called ahead to get things sorted, eh?” Millard asked, flicking switches at the front while Lucas unbuckled himself.
“I left a message,” Lucas replied. “The Smith boys keep the gas changed out so it doesn’t go sour throughout the year. If they didn’t get up here by now, they will. I’m not concerned. All we need is a fire tonight.”
“Ah, well—I thought I saw a tuft or two of smoke coming from the gully,” Millard said. “Maybe one of the boys did get down to the camp, huh?”
“Let’s hope.”
“The Smith boys?” Delaney asked.
Lucas clapped a hand over her quilt-covered thigh. “Friends in the area. They keep an eye on the cabin, check the well so nothing freezes up, and makes sure no one’s stopped in to make a mess when someone isn’t around.”
Huh.
“And the gas is for what, exactly?”
“The old truck,” Lucas replied. “And the generators, too.”
Of course.
She had her answer about just how far out in the country they were at that statement. If someone needed generators, there wouldn’t be power lines.
“There is running water and indoor plumbing, right?” Delaney questioned.
He did mention a well, but …
“Sure. Once I get the gen-set up and running,” Lucas returned, chuckling. Delaney just unlatched the harness at her chest when Lucas stepped past her to open the side door, saying, “Bundle up, sweets. We’ve got a little walk from here.”
What?
He had told her to wear a warm pair of boots. Her wide-eyed expression caused him to laugh. The sound lit up the cabin of the chopper despite the noise, and for a brief second, his features, too. She welcomed the sight considering their entire flight had been spent with him in a somber silence that prickled at the sore spots on her heart.
“Not far,” Lucas assured. “I promise.”
“How far is not far?”
“Depends on how well you can wade snow.”
Delaney blinked, laughing at the absurdity in his statement. “Are you serious?”
He shrugged. “The hard work is at the camp, anyway.”
She had no clue what he meant.
Delaney didn’t dare ask, either. Any regrets or concerns she had about this trip were too little, too late. The cold blast of air that brought wind and spiraling snowflakes into the cab of the chopper when Lucas pushed open the door told her as much.