Toward the end of the meal, the Eagle's eyes glazed over as he began to speak. She could tell his mind was back on the mission. Uh, oh…fun's over, back to business…she thought.
"We need to do some poking around this evening, to see if we can find anything suspicious."
"Poking? What do you mean?"
She burst out laughing; her mind was in the gutter.
"Real funny, pumpkin," He gave a sarcastic look. "Seriously, though, we need to make sure this place is secure before Oren and Diane get here."
The swan's facial expression suddenly hardened. "You're right…you know, I noticed that there were several deserted cross- country trails going into the woods nearby. Do you think we should check them out?"
"Yeah, I guess that would be as good a place as any to start," He quickly picked up a pen to sign the credit card bill. "We'd better get started."
The snow was extremely heavy now, and the slopes were silent except for an intermittent howling wind. The blankets of snow were billowing and making huge drifts all around. The cold was biting at their cheeks and noses as they struggled to explore the abandoned trails. Although they were staying close together, they could barely hear each other through the wind.
"Be careful, Princess, this is extremely dangerous…"Mark's voice was muffled. This is crazy, He thought, It's gotta be too cold even for Zoltar…
They continued on, looking for any sign of Spectra.
I wish we were back in our little cabin, with the fireplace roaring…maybe I could try out one of my new purchases…Princess hoped Mark would mention giving in to the storm for now.
"I just don't see anything…maybe we should wait until this storm blows over…" She tried yelling, but her voice was stifled by the storm; Mark tried to read her lips.
Suddenly, a thundering rumble came from above them. He looked up and reacted quickly, trying to protect Princess by pushing her out of the way.
"Avalanche!" He yelled. It was too late. Both Mark and Princess were swallowed up by the frozen, white waves.
At the bottom of the mountain, all was silent.
Soon after it was over, the silence was broken with the sound of sputtering and coughing. Mark dug his way out of the snow. So that's why these trails are deserted.
As the shock wore off, he realized he hadn't seen or heard Princess…Princess! Princess! Please let her be alive…
He searched frantically until he saw a dainty arm with a familiar wrist activator poking up through the snow. He worked doggedly to uncover her. When he finally uncovered her face, he noticed that she wasn't breathing.
He immediately began CPR on her. As he tried to breathe life back into her, his mind was teaming with regret. I shouldn't have gone along with her suggestion, we should've waited the storm out…C'mon, Prin , please, just breathe…his mind rambled on as he continued compressing her chest… there were so many things I wanted to say to you…just give me another chance…I promise, I'll make it right this time…I know I've failed you in so many ways…
Finally, he heard a faint gasp of air…At last…I've got to get her to shelter…
He lifted her in his arms and stumbled through the blinding storm. Not too far away stood one of the empty cabins, half buried in the avalanche. He was able to uncover to door enough to open it and get through.
Once inside, Mark tried to call for help on his communicator, but he guessed the avalanche and/or the storm broke up the transmission. He reached for his cell phone, but it was missing. Must have been lost out there somewhere…We'll just have to make it until morning.
It was dark and a layer of cold hovered over everything inside the cabin. The electricity had been knocked out by the avalanche. This cabin was a little more rustic than the cabin they had been staying in. It, too, had a fireplace, but no Jacuzzi or heart- shaped bed. The discussion about "where they would sleep tonight" replayed through his mind. This wasn't the way things were supposed to work out, at all…
He carefully laid his weak teammate on the bed and covered her gently. She was still unconscious, battered, and bruised, but breathing softly. Mark ignored his own bumps and bruises, and set about to warm the place.
He noticed that there were a few of those long- burning, chemical treated fire logs by the fireplace. At least these will keep us warm through the night...he thought as he searched for matches.
After starting a fire, he sat on the edge of the bed and held Princess' hand. "I hope you'll forgive me," he said to the sleeping Swan, "I've been such a fool. Life is short and you've helped me to see that it's not all about duty, but it's about making memories and giving to those we love."
His eyes glistened with tears as he continued. "I almost lost you tonight; I almost missed the chance to tell you how much you mean to me…I…love you." He turned away and watched the flames flickering in the fireplace.
"I love you, too…"she whispered groggily.
"You're awake! How do you feel? Are you ok?" he leaned down and hugged her tenderly.
"I'm still taking inventory," she managed a weak smile and tried to sit up.
"Ummm…how much did you just hear?" Mark's gaze slid to the floor. Now it was time to live up to his promises.
"All of it." Her grin widened. "Did you mean what you said?"
His eyes rose to meet hers."All of it." he repeated her words with a sincere gaze into her emerald eyes. Then, the eagle finally caressed her face with his hands, and leaned in for a deep, passionate kiss.