If I Should Die_ A Novel of Suspense - Allison Brennan [134]
“I’ve never walked in these.”
“It’s not hard, and if you go out in those boots you’ll sink into the snow and it’ll take you longer to get to the house.”
She strapped on the snowshoes and left the barn. Steve was right, it wasn’t difficult; she just had to lift her feet up completely and take wide, deliberate steps. She could see the house only fifty yards away, though visibility was definitely worsening. The wind was at her side, wanting to knock her over, but she kept an even pace.
By the time she reached the porch several minutes later, she was winded from the exertion, but exhilarated.
The lodge was a larger replica of the Ponderosa, the home of the Cartwrights of Bonanza fame. But the main floor was eight stairs up from the walk, and Lucy had to take the snowshoes off to climb the stairs. She opened the door, the wonderful aroma of simmering stew reminding her that she was starving. Falling down a lot apparently worked up a huge appetite.
The interior, while bigger than the Cartwrights’ fictional home, was decorated in the same Gold Rush–era style with simple wood furniture and old rugs. Clean and polished, there were no contemporary touches aside from electricity and indoor plumbing. The Delarosa Mountain Retreat was technology free: no television, no computers, no cell-phone reception.
Lucy wasn’t so sure how she felt about that, but they’d be here for just three days. Maybe it was time to unplug, and really, what was a few days? They’d be out of here no later than noon on Monday. In fact, only twenty minutes down the mountain there was a ridge where they’d noted they had cell-phone reception, and fifteen minutes farther there was the small town of Kit Carson, with a restaurant, grocery, and gas station, plus a few dozen residents. Not that Lucy was planning on going to any of them and pleading like an addict, “Please, can I log on to the Internet for just five minutes? I’ll pay you.”
Lucy started up the stairs to her room when Grace Delarosa, Steve’s stepmother, stepped into the foyer. Her face fell when she saw Lucy. “I thought you were Steve. He was supposed to be back by now.”
“He and Patrick went to bring in supplies and check the generators.”
“Was he okay?”
“What do you mean?”
“He hasn’t been himself lately. I’m worried about his health. He’s so much like his father, doesn’t want to go to the doctor. But I finally convinced him because he was getting dizzy so often, and while they couldn’t find anything wrong, when the doctor wanted to do more tests, he refused.”
Lucy thought about Steve’s tumble down the mountain. She bit back the truth, and said, “Patrick will keep an eye on him.”
Grace smiled tightly. “Thank you. We’re having dinner early. Appetizers are already in the dining room.”
“Great, I’ll change and be right down.”
She started up the stairs and heard Grace say, “What do you want now?”
Lucy glanced over her shoulder, startled, thinking that Grace was speaking to her, but all she saw was Grace turning the corner toward the office.
Lucy’s room was the first on the left at the top of the stairs. Patrick’s was directly across from hers. There were six upstairs guest rooms in the lodge, two larger suites and four single rooms. Earlier, she’d learned that Grace and Steve lived in the small cottage behind the lodge, and Grace’s sister, Beth, had taken the caretaker’s room downstairs, adjacent to the office and kitchen.
Lucy had met the three couples staying at the lodge when she and Patrick first arrived. Alan and Heather Larson were thirty-five-year-old workaholics from the Silicon Valley who’d taken the snowmobiles to town in order to check their email. She’d almost laughed at the time, but now realized she’d been suffering the same technological withdrawal.
Kyle and Angie DeWitt were about Lucy’s age, and according to Beth they spent more time in bed than anywhere else. From their lovey-dovey display at the breakfast table, Lucy wasn’t surprised. She admitted to being a bit jealous of the newlyweds, as well as hopeful. Jealous that she didn’t have a close relationship like