“It’ll be fun.”
“I saw how fast that toboggan went down the run,” she countered. “That’s too fast for me.”
“It won’t go that fast with two fat people on it,” Andy inserted.
Mary turned and glared at him. “You do know how far it is to walk back home, don’t you?” she asked.
He laughed. “Yeah, but Chief Alden drove and I’m on his side.”
“I’m making the hot chocolate and cookies,” she said.
“No, Rosie’s going to have them for us when we get back,” Maggie said. “She told me.”
Mary turned back to Bradley. “I’m really getting no support here,” she said.
Shaking his head, he guided her over to the toboggan. “We wouldn’t want them to think you were chicken, would we?” he asked.
“I’m not chicken,” she said, turning around quickly.
Her foot slipped out from under her and she tumbled down. She fell backwards onto the toboggan, her legs and arms hanging over the sides.
“Hold on, Mary. I’ll help you,” Bradley said, moving towards her.
“I can do it,” she called, digging her feet into the snow and pushing.
The toboggan moved sideways and, when Mary tried to roll to the side, slipped even further down the hill. She tried to grab on with her hands, but the force of her movement had the toboggan hurtling down the wrong side of the hill, into the tree line, with Mary clutching the sides for dear life.
“Hold on,” Bradley yelled, running down after her.
“No kidding,” she screamed back.
She dug her hands further into the sides of the sled as it increased in speed due to the steep descent of the hill. Miraculously, the sled slid through the trees and bumped its way across the frozen ground. Mary felt it slide sideways and saw the ground coming up close to her left. She was sure it was going to flip, but instead it set its course down a narrow path that was probably a small creek during the spring run-off. Mary lifted her head and saw the path ended up in the lake and knew that warm spell the week before had weakened the ice covering.
The speed seemed to be lessening a little, but not enough to stop before she hit the lake. She quickly assessed her options. About ten yards ahead of her, an oak tree had fallen over the creek. The low hanging limb of the old tree seemed to be her only chance. As she got close, she lifted her arms and grabbed hold of the vines and brush wrapped around the huge branch. The toboggan slid sideways and then flipped over, dumping Mary into the snow.
Her heart still hammering, Mary stood up, her legs shaky as she grabbed hold of the toboggan’s rope and began to climb out of the small hollow. She was just pulling herself up when she saw him. Dressed for a summer’s day, in swim trunks and a t-shirt, he had dirty blonde hair and was about Andy’s age.
He turned to her, his translucent face covered with dirt, his faded eyes filled with distress. “Can you help me?” he asked. “I can’t find my way home.”
Mary nodded. “Sure, I’d be happy to help you,” she said. “I’m Mary, what’s your name?”
He smiled; relief evident in his face. “I’m Timmy,” he said. “Timmy Beck.”
Chapter Ten
Bradley tore through the woods, grabbing on to tree trunks to keep from slipping and falling down the hill, as he chased Mary and the toboggan. He saw it slip into the creek bed and head down towards the lake, but the angle of the terrain was so steep he lost sight of her. He prayed she wasn’t hurtling into the lake.
He came up to a rise and saw a flash of red below. The toboggan was on its side, just beyond a huge oak limb. Has she been hurt? Was she knocked off the sled? Is she unconscious? What the hell was I thinking, forcing her to ride it?
He continued his run down the hill, angling towards the hollow. He was nearly to the fallen tree when he saw her in the woods. She was safe; he breathed a sigh of relief. And as he looked closer, he realized that she was not only fine, she was sitting on another large limb
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