with dancing eyes. ‘Join the party, sweetheart.’
And she did, smiling a slow-spreading MindErasersmile.
10
Breckenridge was between busy holiday weekends – Martin Luther King Day had just passed and Presidents’ Day was a month away. Kids were back at school. It was seven a.m. and skiers and snowboarders were heading to breakfast early before they hit slopes they were about to find out were quieter than they expected.
Bob Gage sat in Daylight Donuts spinning the playing card he was given when he placed his order. The ace of spades. He nodded his head to the beat. He was on his second coffee when a waitress walked by with the matching card and stepped back a few paces to his table to lay down her tray. She handed him a plate of bacon, egg, biscuits and gravy. His cellphone started to ring. He mouthed a thank you to her as he answered it.
‘Sheriff Gage? It’s Patrick Transom. I’m sorry. I tried to be understanding. I mean, I do understand. But I’ve had time to think about everythingand … I want my sister. I need my sister back. I’m not going to wait months for warm weather to …’ His voice caught. ‘I … understand that Search and Rescue doesn’t want to go back up there. But I do. I’m an –’
‘Mr Transom, you’re right. It’s not safe up there. A snow assessment’s being done this morning, but –’
‘I don’t care if it’s not safe,’ said Patrick. ‘I want to –’
‘We cannot let you do that,’ said Bob. ‘It’s a crime scene up there as far as we’re concerned. We can’t let anyone in there. I’m sure you understand that. You probably haven’t slept, and maybe this seems like the only solution right now …’
‘If the snow report is good, if the conditions are stable enough, can I go?’
‘No. But …’ He paused. ‘OK … if the snow report comes back good, we’ll head on up there.’ He pushed his plate away from him. ‘I’ll get in touch with Search and Rescue.’
Gary Dettling pulled up into the small driveway at the Firelight Inn. The street was quiet. He turned off the engine and waited. After five minutes, he texted Ren. He got no reply. He knocked at the door of the inn. The owner was on his way out with a snow shovel.
‘Sorry to bother you,’ said Gary. ‘I’m looking for a woman checked in last night, Ren Bryce?’
‘Oh, yes … I’m sure she’s gone already.’
‘What?’
‘About twenty minutes ago.’
Gary shook his head slowly. ‘Great. Thanks.’
Ren sat in Bob Gage’s office holding a mug of coffee on her knee. She had started the day with Visine and extra foundation. A notebook lay on the low coffee table beside her and she was twisted in her chair to scribble on it. A night of drinking could take her to instant mental clarity or thick mental fog. Today, she was all-clear. RenBryce OS X . She smiled to herself.
‘Hey,’ said Gary, walking in, nodding at Bob and Mike, Gressett and Todd.
‘Wasn’t I meant to pick you up?’ he said to Ren.
‘Oh. Didn’t you get my text?’ said Ren, pulling out her phone, about to show him the text that she now saw was pending in her Outbox.
‘What were you doing, walking?’ said Gary.
‘I wanted to blast some cold air through my tiny mind.’
‘You didn’t think you were going to get enough up on Quandary?’
Gary had nearly been a lawyer. Ren was reminded of this with every question-after-question barrage. Gary Dettling couldn’t stand the thought of being made a fool of with lies.
‘Yeah and we’re going up up,’ said Bob, puttingdown the phone. ‘That was Search and Rescue. Patrick Transom called me an hour ago, insisting we go back up to try and retrieve the body. To be honest, I thought the snow assessment wouldn’t be good, so I said we’d give it a go. Turns out there was no snowfall overnight, the winds were less than five miles an hour, so we’re good to go.’
‘Can we all go up?’ said Ren.
‘Sure,’ said Bob. ‘I know I’m really looking forward
And she did, smiling a slow-spreading MindErasersmile.
10
Breckenridge was between busy holiday weekends – Martin Luther King Day had just passed and Presidents’ Day was a month away. Kids were back at school. It was seven a.m. and skiers and snowboarders were heading to breakfast early before they hit slopes they were about to find out were quieter than they expected.
Bob Gage sat in Daylight Donuts spinning the playing card he was given when he placed his order. The ace of spades. He nodded his head to the beat. He was on his second coffee when a waitress walked by with the matching card and stepped back a few paces to his table to lay down her tray. She handed him a plate of bacon, egg, biscuits and gravy. His cellphone started to ring. He mouthed a thank you to her as he answered it.
‘Sheriff Gage? It’s Patrick Transom. I’m sorry. I tried to be understanding. I mean, I do understand. But I’ve had time to think about everythingand … I want my sister. I need my sister back. I’m not going to wait months for warm weather to …’ His voice caught. ‘I … understand that Search and Rescue doesn’t want to go back up there. But I do. I’m an –’
‘Mr Transom, you’re right. It’s not safe up there. A snow assessment’s being done this morning, but –’
‘I don’t care if it’s not safe,’ said Patrick. ‘I want to –’
‘We cannot let you do that,’ said Bob. ‘It’s a crime scene up there as far as we’re concerned. We can’t let anyone in there. I’m sure you understand that. You probably haven’t slept, and maybe this seems like the only solution right now …’
‘If the snow report is good, if the conditions are stable enough, can I go?’
‘No. But …’ He paused. ‘OK … if the snow report comes back good, we’ll head on up there.’ He pushed his plate away from him. ‘I’ll get in touch with Search and Rescue.’
Gary Dettling pulled up into the small driveway at the Firelight Inn. The street was quiet. He turned off the engine and waited. After five minutes, he texted Ren. He got no reply. He knocked at the door of the inn. The owner was on his way out with a snow shovel.
‘Sorry to bother you,’ said Gary. ‘I’m looking for a woman checked in last night, Ren Bryce?’
‘Oh, yes … I’m sure she’s gone already.’
‘What?’
‘About twenty minutes ago.’
Gary shook his head slowly. ‘Great. Thanks.’
Ren sat in Bob Gage’s office holding a mug of coffee on her knee. She had started the day with Visine and extra foundation. A notebook lay on the low coffee table beside her and she was twisted in her chair to scribble on it. A night of drinking could take her to instant mental clarity or thick mental fog. Today, she was all-clear. RenBryce OS X . She smiled to herself.
‘Hey,’ said Gary, walking in, nodding at Bob and Mike, Gressett and Todd.
‘Wasn’t I meant to pick you up?’ he said to Ren.
‘Oh. Didn’t you get my text?’ said Ren, pulling out her phone, about to show him the text that she now saw was pending in her Outbox.
‘What were you doing, walking?’ said Gary.
‘I wanted to blast some cold air through my tiny mind.’
‘You didn’t think you were going to get enough up on Quandary?’
Gary had nearly been a lawyer. Ren was reminded of this with every question-after-question barrage. Gary Dettling couldn’t stand the thought of being made a fool of with lies.
‘Yeah and we’re going up up,’ said Bob, puttingdown the phone. ‘That was Search and Rescue. Patrick Transom called me an hour ago, insisting we go back up to try and retrieve the body. To be honest, I thought the snow assessment wouldn’t be good, so I said we’d give it a go. Turns out there was no snowfall overnight, the winds were less than five miles an hour, so we’re good to go.’
‘Can we all go up?’ said Ren.
‘Sure,’ said Bob. ‘I know I’m really looking forward
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