tonight, too?” Amanda asked. “Mommy says it’s the highlight of the start of the holiday season. What’s that mean?”
Ashley looked at Melanie with a knowing smile. “You want me to tell her?”
“Absolutely,” Melanie said, bending over to tighten the hooks on her ski boots.
Ashley pursed her lips, moved them from side to side as though she were contemplating the best answer. “Well, it’s kinda like the first day of school when the teacher tells the class what she wants us to learn that year, only the Christmas season is short and a lot more fun.” She looked at Melanie for confirmation.
Grinning at the complete and total simplicity of Ashley’s explanation, Melanie stated, “I couldn’t have said it better myself.”
“It’s sorta like a new beginning, right, Auntie M?” Ashley said.
She continued to be amazed by the girls’ perception. They were both exceptionally intelligent for their ages. Melanie knew Stephanie took great pride in her children’s education. Many times Melanie had stopped by their apartment only to find the three of them gathered at the kitchen table with a pile of books in front of them studying anything and everything, ranging from science to geography.
“That’s exactly what it is,” Melanie agreed.
“Then let’s go. I wanna ride the lift now. Can I sit in the middle?” Amanda asked.
Melanie stood up to her full height, gazed to her left, where she saw that the lift lines were getting longer by the minute. If they were lucky, they’d have just enough time for one run before stopping in to see Stephanie. “Let’s do our safety check first.” Melanie had spent most of her life on the slopes but never took her skill or that of the girls for granted. A loose boot buckle or a stray article of clothing could cause a lifetime disability. Melanie wasn’t going to allow the girls to get hurt on her watch. No way. They went through their usual routine.
First, they checked to make sure they had all the basics covered. Skis and boots were fastened properly. Pole straps were checked. Helmets and goggles were secure. Gloves were on properly. Since the season was predicted to be one of the coldest on record, Melanie had given the girls foot and hand warmers to place inside their gloves and boots, plus she now put an extra set of each in the inside zippered pocket of their ski jackets. Each of them had a tube of cherry-flavored lip balm in her pocket, along with a granola bar. As an added precaution, Melanie always made sure Ashley kept a pack of waterproof matches inside her jacket. One never knew. At ten, Ashley had been taught a few basic survival skills. Melanie was sure Ashley would never need them as long as she was around, but that was part of being prepared. One must always prepare for the unexpected.
“Sunscreen on our faces, and we’re good to go,” Melanie said, removing a small tube of sunscreen from her pocket. She made quick work of slathering their faces with the cream before readjusting their helmets and goggles. “Now remember, I’m in the rear, and you two always stay in front of me. If you need to stop and rest, just stop at the side of the run that faces away from the mountain, okay?”
“Okay,” the girls parroted.
Melanie followed close behind the girls as they skied to the long lift lines. Dozens of skiers dressed in every color of the rainbow swished in and out of the lanes, racing to get to the front of the lift line. Melanie kept her eyes on the girls as they carefully maneuvered toward the chairlifts. They were moving surprisingly fast today considering it was the first official day of the Christmas season. Throngs of skiers dotted the mountainside, like the lofty evergreens that flanked the trails.
Above, the skies were heavy with slate gray clouds. The wind was frigid, the conditions perfect for a snowstorm. Melanie wanted to take the girls up for at least one run since the weather might not cooperate later in the day. The forecast called for snow, a necessity for all skiers and snowboarders, but Melanie didn’t like the looks of the clouds looming above the mountaintops. Since the snowfall wasn’t predicted until later in the afternoon, she reasoned they should have time for at least one decent run.
When it was their turn at the chairlift, the trio slid into position directly behind the bold red line, and gripped their ski poles in their left hands as they’d been taught while looking behind them to see the chairlift as it slowed to allow them to take a seat. Once seated with the safety bar down, Melanie commented, “You two are really getting to be pros at this. It took me forever to learn how to load up without falling.”
Since they were going on the blue runs, their ride was longer than normal. It took almost seven minutes for the ski lift to arrive at their designated stop. During the ride up, both girls chatted nonstop, telling her what they hoped Santa would bring them for Christmas. They’d told her about the wall plaques they had made for their mom in art class, and last but not least, they said that their “Aunt Grace” wanted to introduce Melanie to her brother, Bryce.
She couldn’t help but blush. She’d seen Bryce at Maximum Glide on more than one occasion. He was the epitome of a true hunk. Melanie thought he fit the image of a ski bum more so than that of a college professor. Lucky for her, they arrived at their stop in time to provide her with an excuse not to answer. But she knew these little mischief makers, and this wouldn’t be the last of that conversation. They were relentless when it came to questioning why she wasn’t married and didn’t have children of her own.
Both girls exited the lift chair with ease, skiing away as fast as possible so as not to block the next group of skiers preparing to exit the lift.
The particular area on the mountain where Melanie was taking them had an elevation closer to thirteen thousand than twelve thousand feet. The air was thin at that altitude, making one almost gasp for oxygen. The temperature was several degrees lower than at the base of the mountain. Wind gusts at this height caused the majestic towering evergreen tops to sway from side to side, their movements producing a soft whisper, a slow dance, with the bone-chilling winds supplying a soft whistle as their music.
Melanie skied to where the girls were waiting. “Are you both ready?” she asked.
Again, they nodded their helmet-covered heads.
Melanie motioned with her gloved hand for them to begin their descent. They pushed off like two little thoroughbreds, traversing downward without getting too close to the edge of the mountainside. Melanie trailed behind them for several minutes before the run led to a bowl of intersections leading to three different areas on the mountain. One ski lift would take them to the very top of the mountain, where they would find the double black diamond runs. The second lift would take them to the opposite side of the mountain, where the terrain park allowed freestylers and snowboarders to hone their acrobatic skills on half-pipes, rails, ramps, and tables. The third lift led to the mogul runs, for those hardy souls brave enough to tackle the minimounds of packed snow that dipped to the bottom of the mountain at a ninety-degree angle. The girls knew that they were supposed to wait for her at the big blue sign directing them back to lift number one at the base of the mountain.
She weaved in and out of the groups of skiers, passed a friend who was on the ski patrol. When she reached the intersection, she searched for the two neon yellow ski suits. Seeing a small group gathered at their appointed sign, Melanie made quick work of poling over to get the girls. When she arrived, she was a bit surprised to find that neither of the two kids wearing yellow neon ski suits was Ashley or Amanda. She pushed off and circled the bowl. Seeing that there were no pint-sized girls wearing yellow suits, she stopped once again and scanned the area around her. Then she skied slowly around the perimeter of the bowl once again, and she thoroughly searched the sides of the run, where a grove of evergreens flanked the trail. Maybe they’d fallen, hit a small snowdrift, or something, she thought.
Melanie jammed her poles into the snow behind her, trying to pick up speed on the flat terrain. She went from side to side, looking in every possible direction, every gully, and even went off trail, thinking one of the girls might have gone to the woods looking for a bit of privacy in order to use the restroom. They’d done this before, and while Melanie didn’t approve of it, sometimes Mother Nature’s call had to be answered no matter what. After searching for fifteen minutes,