Raymond glanced back every now and then as they worked their way into the white valley, appreciative that the young sheriff and the tenacious paramedic followed along well within the path of his footsteps. Their willingness to stay in the path he was making and not go charging through the drifts by themselves, made his job a thousand times easier. He returned his gaze to the way ahead, his eyes squinted against the bright white of the snowfall, trying to stay in tune with the traction that his boots found on the surface beneath the drifts.

"Raymond," a voice called to his right, and a hand grasped his shoulder. He half-turned, throwing out his arms to balance at the sudden change in pace, and caught a glimpse of Roy's wind-reddened face before following his paramedic friend's intense gaze that had shifted toward the east. There, in stark contrast to the frozen sky, a thin wisp of smoke drifted into the sharp air.

"Got to be the hunting cabin," Dean gasped, shifting his backpack, his breath a puff of white in the morning light. "Right, Roy? I am pretty sure it's over that way."

The blonde man did not speak, finding that his throat was constricted and an aching, burning sensation settled behind his half-frozen eyelids. Was it possible that his friends were alive? The world blurred for a quick moment, and he vaguely heard Raymond answer the sheriff's hopeful question.

"Yeah, Dean, it definitely sits over that way. Quite a bit of expanse left to cross, though. I left a message with Carbondale to send up a chopper as soon as the weather cleared. Aspen has one, but they called in and let the office know that they had some rotor damage from the ice up there last night. If we can get down there, and confirm all is well, and that Hank and Ashley and Marco are alive in the cabin, then we can get the chopper in by this afternoon to get us all out - best case scenario. that way we don't have to trudge through this snow again. Roy? Hey man, you still with us?"

While the rescue chief had been talking, five million things had raced through Roy's addled mind, and he did not hear Raymond's concerned question. If there was smoke, then there had to be life in the cabin. He could clearly see the grey wisps now, and the sight was sending surging adrenaline through his body. But his practical paramedic side of the brain reminded him that he had seen the violence of the avalanche as it had ripped through the valley, and he could not logically believe that anyone had survived that kind of power. But he also knew that smoke meant that someone had survived. Maybe it would just be Marco, and he had found their bodies. Maybe the smoke was just a sign to let them know where to come and find him. Maybe it was just hunters, traveling through on a trip, and only disappointment would come of their sludging through snow to get to the smoke. Maybe it was the escaped convict, holed up in a temporary hideout. Maybe -

"I say, Roy!" The sudden shout and shaking of his shoulder brought Roy instantly out of his emotional distress and his blurry vision focused on Raymond, now looking concernedly into his face. "You good, brother?"

Roy looked away, looking toward that thin grey trickle that rose from the white surroundings. It had to be them. It just had to be.

"Yeah," he nodded, grimly shifting himself away from the watchful eyes of his companions. "Yeah, I'm - I'm good."

Raymond watched him for a moment, knowing good and well that the young man was completely faking it, but he also knew that no one was going to turn back now. He lurched his backpack upwards into a more comfortable position and took a few steps down the hillside.

"Alright, men. Let's head on down into the valley. Stay close and watch for pockets of loose snow. Test it with your pole before each step. Let's go bring 'em home."


"You gave us quite a scare."

Captain Stanley handed a cup of hot chocolate to Marco, who accepted it gratefully. The heavy crockery was chipped on one side and must have been there as long as the cabin. It could have been the Taj Mahal for all he cared. Now seated on the worn couch, he looked much more like himself, if not just a little bashful about practically falling at their feet completely frozen. He stretched his stocking feet in the direction of the dancing fireplace.
"Real sorry about that, Cap. Johnny was in a bit of a daze there in the hospital, but in his subconscious state he mumbled something about you guys maybe being there. I don't actually know how he knew that. Could have been in the brochure or something. But I just had to make sure that there wasn't a chance you two had made it this far. Glad you guys are alright. Figured at least I could bring some supplies in case you guys needed anything."

Hank glanced at the fireman sideways, then handed his sister a steaming mug as well. "Thanks for coming, pal. You put your life on the line, and I will not forget it. But that was a brainless thing to do without backup. That'll earn you a week of latrine duty if we make it out of this igloo."

Marco smiled awkwardly, not a bit prideful at his captain's praise or hurt by his scolding. Frankly, he was so happy to see his captain alive that Marco would have been happy to receive a month of latrine duty at this point. "Gee, thanks Cap. Don't know if it helped or hurt, getting out here, I might just be stuck here with you guys."

The captain glanced quickly at his sister who frowned over her cup in concern at Marco's unthinking observation. Cap cleared his throat. "Nonsense, Marco, has the cold gotten to your senses already? We will get out of here just fine. In fact, two strong men is better than one. I would say you helped our odds quite a bit, frankly."

Marco glanced quickly from his captain to Ashley as realization dawned on him of the negative impact that his words could have on Ashley. "Absolutely Captain. We will definitely get out of here when the snow stops. Two brains are sure better than one. Just got to work on a plan. What would Johnny and Roy do? Assessment of the scene. Right. Any injuries that we should be aware of?"

Hank shrugged. "Ashley here's got a bit of a decent head injury, with signs of a concussion, and a broken arm. Johnny set it before though, I checked it once we got here and wrapped it again, hopefully that should be good till we get somewhere with a more qualified medical staff. Sprained my left wrist, but it feels okay if I don't lift things with it. And my ankle too but it's bearable. But nothing else major."

Marco nodded. "Alright, that's good. Better splint that ankle if you plan on walking on it at all. With a sprain already in effect, breaking it is just a step away. Por cierto, you probably already looked, but is there any radio or technological stuff around here?"

Hank nodded and waved toward the table in the back of the cabin. "Yeah, an old hunter's radio. Bit of a mess, really, but I have it half fixed, I'd say. Want to take a look at it?"

Marco waved his cup in the air and nodded. "Sure. Care to set this over there and I will take a look?"

"Not going to take any chances on anything liquid being near that old pile of metal," the fire captain laughed. "It may be pieces of junk, but it's all we've got right now. It's just one leak in the roof away from failing as it is. Drink up, then we will see if we can't get a message out. I don't know about you but I think the front desk should know that we want want to speak to a manager immediately to demand an upgrade on our room. The view is garbage, and I requested a kitchenette." The laughter this comment brought from Marco and Ashley was a healing balm to the taught nerves. Amazing how companionship makes any disaster just a little easier to bear.

"I'm just glad to hear that Johnny and Roy are okay," Ashley spoke quietly. She cradled her steaming cup in her uninjured hand. "And I have to say Marco, you know just how to make a girl feel like a million bucks. Bringing cocoa with was a lovely idea."

Marco nodded kindly her direction. "Eres bienvenido. Glad to be of service. Just a bit of a survival kit I carry when skiing."


"Snow's letting up," Dean observed mildly. "That should go in our favor." The two men with him did not speak, but their steps picked up pace as everyone felt the hopeful encouragement of the rising sun. Visibility was on their side, and in the distance, the hunters cabin rested like a dark shadow against the pale snow, not so very far away now.

"Say, is that smoke?" Raymond's deeper voice cut through Roy's exhausted nerves like a knife, and he jumped, stumbling, and focused his heavy eyes toward the direction the rescue chief was pointing. Dean paused too, raising a hand to shield the brightness of the white sky from his vision.

In the distance, the grey cabin sat like a boulder against the soaring mountains behind it. Faintly against the white cliffs trickled a wisp of grey. Adrenaline poured into his bloodstream in a cold rush and Roy stumbled forward, resting a hand excitedly on Raymond's shoulder. "That's got to be them," he mumbled, the exhaustion clear in his tone. His lips felt like they were completely frozen and out of control with cold, but he didn't care. His friends were close, so very close.

Dean put his hands on hips. "Well, either Marco made it over there and is holed up waiting for us, or we've got your friends in there and they survived the avalanche."

Roy rubbed his wind-chapped forehead nervously. "I don't even want to think or hope just yet, ya know. Would be a horrible disappointment if we find ourselves out here stabbing poles in the ground for a body search because it's just some hunters." His fingers ached from the cold, but there was a nervous heat in the pit of his stomach as his nerves niggled with the idea that maybe it could just be Marco all alone or maybe no one they knew at all.

Raymond patted his shoulder firmly, then spoke into his radio, communicating with the helicopter. "Well boys," he spoke cheerfully, after 10-4ing the chopper, "They are on their way over. If we can get the rest of the way to the cabin there, the chopper will pick us up. let's go boys, this rescue is almost over. Let's see who will be going home with us."


Marco and Hank sat carefully studying the random pieces of radio. The room was still. Ashley sat by the fireplace, watching them, trying not to stir and distract their focused train of thought. Having a moment to try to process the whirlwind of the last couple days, she thought back to how she had grown through this crazy ordeal. It had been a horribly painful growth process, and even now the throbbing in her head was getting worse by the moment but she didn't dare to mention it. Hank and Marco were trying so hard to get them out safely and she didn't want to worry her brother any more than he already was. He was hunched over the table, his hair disheveled, coat hung over his shoulders like a cape, carefully examining screws and wires in the dim light that the fireplace offered. Marco looked more alert, having not endured a beating by the avalanche, and was screwing something into the base of the radio with a stick screwdriver he had shaved out of the firewood. Leaning her head back against the wall, Ashley thought back to the last few years, and the pit of despair that she had let herself fall into. It hadn't been worth it. The pain that her actions had caused, and the selfishness she had acted on had done nothing but waste time and energy, and put her in a position where those that loved her would always carry a worry in the back of their mind. Blinking hard against the growing sleepiness that slipped consciousness from her one second at a time, she thought of Johnny and his bravery, and candidness, in her moment of need. She owed him a huge thank you. And Doctor Brackett and Doctor Early and Dixie, gently Dixie. They had all treated her as a human even when she had felt as low as a mouse. They all knew her struggles now. But Ashley found she didn't want to fight that battle anymore. The things that had hidden in her heart and eaten at her no longer seemed to carry the sharp goads that they once did. She had survived a mighty avalanche, surely there was nothing she couldn't survive out there in the real world beyond these log walls.

There was nothing to do but move forward, trying to change the record she had created for herself. To grow up, finally, and figure life out on her own, instead of always depending on others to be the knights in shining armor.

She half smiled, considering how Hank Stanley would look in a suit of armor. Tall and lanky, with a helmet of steel to hide his tousled hair and half smile. The vision before her faded, and all she felt was the warmth of the room. Dancing flames crackled and snapped, fading into the mental image of knights at war, their swords clashing over and over and over...

The cup fell from her hands with a smash, and the concussion welcomed her into darkness.

At that same moment, someone began pounding on the door, punctuated with a shout of "Marco!"


One more chapter to go!