The icy path was an illusion, spun from snow and shadows, and almost
invisible in the midday glare. Lee squinted as he trudged beside the
single set of melting footprints on the narrow trail--he had to be
only seconds behind her. As much as he wanted to catch up, he hoped
that the cold mountain air had chilled Amanda's anger.
One simple little comment, and she blew up in his face. What did he
do to deserve it? Nothing. Some New Year's vacation this was turning
out to be.
As the first delicate snowflakes kissed his lashes, Lee blinked and
plunged his icy fingers into his pockets. Great, now it was
snowing. Instead of snuggling with his lovely wife in the little
rented cabin, basking in the glow of a cracking fire, he was tromping
through snowdrifts, freezing his ass off, and shouting until he was
hoarse.
Where was she?
"Amanda!" His shouts echoed through the canyon below, mocking him.
"Come on. I'm sorry."
The deer path he was following meandered along the rim, then dipped
sharply into the canyon, trickling downward in winding, narrow
switchbacks to the valley floor. When he paused at the top, the
crusty snow shifted beneath his feet, forcing him to take a hasty
step back to firmer ground. Small footprints still nestled between
his larger tracks. Just one set heading onward--right to the edge--
and no prints coming back.
A dull ache formed in his chest, as he eased as close to the rim as
he dared and dropped to his hands and knees to look over. She
couldn't have tried to make it down there, could she? A single pine
perched on the edge of the cliff, its bare roots jutting out over the
chasm. One day, the water and wind would undermine it completely and
send it over the edge, but not today. Hopefully. Wrapping his arm
around the solid trunk, he used the anchor to lean even further.
"Amanda?"
The sun's glare reflecting on the snow nearly blinded him, and the
icy wind whistling up the canyon carried his voice away. He could
see the narrow trail hugging the cliff face below, but there were no
footprints beyond the lip of the canyon. Footsteps to the edge, and
none heading back.
Why had they been fighting? It was all his fault . . .
"AMANDA!"
Leaning even farther, he listened for a shout, a cry--any sound that
would lead him to her. But only the wind answered. Through the
tangled roots of the tree, he could see the outline of a ledge.
Could she have fallen?
Rope. That's what he needed. He dragged himself painfully to his
feet and took a careful step back from the edge, ice already forming
on the edges of his parka and coating his eyelashes. Braving the
biting wind, he eased forward one more time and called over the
edge.
"AMANDA?"
"WHAT?"
Lee spun to face the voice behind him, and his left foot broke
through the brittle crust of half frozen snow. Arms flailing, he
fell backward over the edge, in a flurry of powder and ice.
SMKSMKSMKSMKSMK
"Oh my gosh . . . LEE!" Amanda screamed over the edge of the cliff,
leaning forward but afraid to look.
"AMANDA . . . get the rope!"
The tight knot in her chest eased. "Are you okay?" She could see
his pale hands clinging to the tree roots and just make out the top
of his head.
"Get the rope . . . NOW!"
She scrambled away from the edge and ran recklessly down the hill to
the cabin, jumping tree stumps and dodging the boulders in her path.
She took the three porch steps in one leap and grabbed the doorknob.
As she turned it, her gloved hands slipped against the cold metal,
and she yanked off her glove and tried it again.
Locked.
Just wonderful. Skidding on the ice, she slid across the front porch
and back down into the snow, high-stepping through the drifts until
she stood in front of the kitchen window. She reached across the
loosely stacked firewood and tugged.
Stuck.
Of course.
She snatched a hefty piece of firewood from the pile and swung it at
the window, shattering the glass and knocking the frame loose from
the wall. Batting the jagged pieces of glass out of her way, she
scrambled through the hole.
She darted from room to room, checking the closets and cupboards and
looking under the beds. Where was that rope?
SMKSMKSMKSMKSMK
Lee tried to concentrate on keeping his grip on the slippery roots as
he groped for toeholds in the narrow ledge. Ignoring the biting
wind, he kept his eyes fixed on the cliff above; he wasn't about to
look down.
Where was she?
"Lee, are you . . . still there?" Yeah, right, where else would he
be? But the sound of her voice cut through the cold's icy grip on
his heart, and he held on to the roots, instead of his anger. He'd
worry about assigning blame later, when he was in her arms.
"Tie off the rope and throw it down. Hurry!"
"Ummm . . . Lee?" Her hesitant voice sent a shiver up his spine, one
not related to the cold breeze that gusted upward from the valley
floor and billowed under his jacket.
"WHAT?"
"Where *is* the rope?"
"ARGHH . . . in the shed behind the cabin!" Was she trying to kill
him? Was this retribution?
An eternity later, he heard the crunch of snow above his head and
almost lost his grip. When the rope snaked down alongside him, his
breath frosted in the icy air as he let out a long sigh of relief.
Finally.
The top of Amanda's head popped back into view. "I've tied it off on
a tree."
He grabbed the thin rope with one hand, and then with the other. As
he started to pull himself up hand-over-hand, his legs lost their
purchase on the cliff face and swung out beneath him. Swaying, he
pulled himself up to the rim, but with his feet dangling over the
abyss, he had no leverage to pull himself over the edge.
"AMANDA?"
"WHAT?"
"Ugh . . . err . . . grab on to the rope or something and . . .
uhhh . . .help pull me up." His cold fingers slipped on the rope,
and he dropped several inches.
Her worried face appeared just above his as she reached down, grabbed
the hood of his parka, and pulled. He shifted his grip and surged
upward, struggling for a handhold on the edge. The parka tightened
across his chest, then started to slide up his back and over his
outstretched arms.
"STOP . . . grab something else . . . anything else . . . and PULL!"
As he struggled to hook his leg up over the edge, he felt her reach
down along his body.
"Owww . . . not that . . . not there . . . let go!"
"Sorry." Her grip shifted up six inches, and her fingers hooked
under his belt. With one final effort, he scrambled up over the edge
and fell into her arms, knocking her onto her back in the snow.
He lay there panting, his head against Amanda's stomach, as she
brushed his hood back and picked the damp hair out of his eyes. One
question made it through his frozen lips.
"Why was there only one set of footprints leading to the edge?"
She continued to run her fingers through his hair, plucking ice
crystals from the damp strands. "Well, I wasn't watching where I was
going, `cause I was just so mad, you know, and then I almost walked
right over the edge. The snow there was crusty and seemed kind of
loose, so I thought that I should probably walk back through my own
footprints, since I knew that the ground was solid there, since I'd
stepped there before, and I didn't want to fall."
He shook his head and dragged himself to his feet, pulling her up
with him. While her stomach made an excellent pillow, it was time to
find that warm fire. "Why didn't I see you from the path?"
"I was behind that big log, I guess." Lee looked up the hill in the
direction she was pointing. It was a big log, all right. No doubt
about it.
He tried to keep his tone level and cool but was sure that some of
the exasperation filtered through. "Amanda, why were you behind that
log?" He expected annoyance, or perhaps an apology, but he wasn't
prepared for the look on her face.
"Well, I . . . uh . . . just needed to go behind the log, that's
all." He could see a blush rising across her cheeks. Maybe some
things were better left unsaid. Her hand was cold but comforting in
his grip, as they walked down the path.
He climbed the porch steps and stomped the snow from his boots, but
when he reached for the doorknob, Amanda tugged at his sleeve. "Lee,
it's no use, it's . . ."
When the door swung open, she stared at it for several moments. "It
was stuck," she whispered, before he finally grasped her hand and
guided her inside.
Twenty minutes, several old boards, and two rolls of duct tape later,
Lee snuggled with his wife on a pile of blankets in front of a
roaring fire. Wet clothes were spread haphazardly over every
conceivable surface near the fireplace, and his makeshift repairs to
the kitchen window kept most of the cold at bay.
"I'm sorry we fought . . ." Lee rested his chin on the top of her
head as she burrowed even closer.
"I'm sorry about the window."
"I'm sorry this Ice Fishing trip didn't go like we planned."
"I'm sorry you fell off the cliff."
"You know, I can't even remember what started the whole thing."
Amanda stiffened against him. Uh-oh. Just couldn't leave well
enough alone, could you, Stetson? Lee cringed, bracing for the storm.
It blew right over top of him--a thunderhead with sharp knees and
elbows. She grabbed his shoulders and tugged until he was sitting
up, with his back against the sofa and an angry Amanda in his lap.
The look in her eyes was unmistakable. "Oh, I do."
He slid back, but she followed him down, until they were nose to
nose. Her body was warm, but her expression was anything but
comforting.
"The next time you try to tell me that cleaning the fish is a woman's
work, it's back over the cliff for you. Got that, buster?"
He gulped. "Is that a threat?"
"It's a promise . . ." What else could he say?
Nothing. So he sealed the promise with a kiss.
She melted into his arms, and he pulled her closer, tucking a fire-
warmed blanket around them both and resting his chin against her soft
hair. As the wind whistled through the trees outside, they watched
the embers crackle and glow.
Another near-death experience. Another unexpected adventure. Another
glorious year with Amanda. As her breathing settled into the deep
and easy rhythm of sleep, the old wooden coo-coo began to chirp.
Lee smiled. "Happy anniversary, sweetheart," he whispered.
The End
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. No money is being made from this work. No copyright infringement is intended.