On Ice Read Online Free PDF Page B

excitement today.”
    Fear tingled in the pit of her stomach. She pointed out the window to change the subject. “What's that?” She gestured toward a group of brightly decorated houses. They were painted in Easter egg colors and designs. Adorning each of the roofs was a frill of lacy cutout designs.
    “ There's a large community of Russian descendants living in Alaska. They keep to themselves mostly and stick to the old ways.”
    Leaving the city behind, the houses and businesses grew infrequent. The highway made a slow ascent.
    Rene leaned back and yawned, wondering how long it would take for them to arrive at their destination. She couldn't wait to get a good look at Maddy's packet of papers that she’d barely inspected. Sara fell asleep in the back and Seth remained silent.
    As they drove, majestic snow-capped mountain peaks arose in the distance. The sky was a crystal blue contrasting sharply with the stark white peaks. On their level, many verdant green shades played against each other. Tall pines nudged close to clear streams and lakes.
    “That water looks so clean and inviting,” Rene said.
    “ It's clean all right,” Brett nodded toward the water, “but I wouldn't go skinny-dipping. The temperature is only in the 40's now and the water is a whole lot colder.”
    “ It looks like a bright spring day from here.”
    “ It is a spring day,” he said, “in Alaska. Even in summer it never gets much over 70 degrees.”
    “ I'll have to buy more clothing,” Rene said. “At this time of year, the stores in Houston didn't carry anything even remotely appropriate.”
    “ You don't need anything fancy. Just get some comfortable, sturdy shoes, lots of warm socks. Got to keep your feet warm.” He glanced down at Rene's sneakers. “You'll need something better than those for outdoors.”
    Rene looked at her expensive brand of walking shoes. “These are pretty sturdy.” She heard the defensive tone in her own voice.
    “ Not by a long shot,” he said. “You'll want to get something insulated with a hard rubber sole. It won't do to get your feet chilled. Other than that, you'll probably want to stock up on long-sleeved shirts and denim jeans. When it gets colder there will be a big selection of long johns in the stores. Just remember to dress in layers. You can take some off when you’re inside and put them on when you go out.”
    “ Is there a place to make these purchases where we're going?”
    “ Sad Horse has a few stores, a cafe, a bar, gas station, bank, beauty shop, the post office and the church. Father Paul and Reverend Goodnight share the same building.”
    “ Where did the name ‘Sad Horse’ come from?” Rene hoped this information wasn't also in the unread letter.
    “ There's the river running along the edge of town. Way back when, somebody climbed up on the mountain and thought the river down below looked like the neck of a dejected horse. Named it the Sad Horse River and put it on the map that way. Town built up after the gold strike.”
    Rene became accustomed to his clipped speech and fragmented sentences. When he wasn't frowning he could almost pass for attractive. His hair was way too long and the dark brown beard was unkempt. A crumpled black felt hat was crammed down on his head and piercing blue eyes glowered out from under the long hair. His flannel-clad arms poked out of a down-filled vest. The cuffs were turned back to expose powerful-looking forearms. Even the hands gripping the wheel were muscular.
    Rene shivered thinking how much pain Mark's smaller, well-manicured hands could inflict. What damage could these big paws do?
    “ Are you cold?” Brett pushed the heater up a notch.
    “ A little.” She noticed that Seth had also fallen asleep, leaning against Sara for support. “Wow! The kids are exhausted.”
    “ You probably are, too. You should get to bed as soon as you can.”
    He turned off the main highway and onto another well-traveled road. They had been climbing all