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ut his mother, that there was very little hope of a reunion with her boy. How could he trust her again? Life had taught him that people you love left. There was absolutely nothing she could do to reassure him it wouldn’t happen again. Only he could deal with his fears. Only he could make the choice to take a chance on being hurt again. Rejected again. And she didn’t think he’d be able to do it. His fears were too ingrained. And she was partly to blame for that.
“I think it’s safe to go to the snowmobiles. I think the bad guys are in the castle. I’ll take the one on the left,” Alastair said. “You take the other one. Remember what I told you. You need to get the cloth wet with petrol before you wedge it back into the tank, otherwise it won’t light. Not in this weather.” He put his hand under her chin to angle her face up to his. For a second Rainne thought he was going to kiss her again, and her heart actually stopped beating. But he didn’t. “Don’t take any chances, Rainbow. First sign of trouble, run.”
Hearing him call her Rainbow again shot little sparks of warmth through her chilled body. “Not without you.”
“No, Rainbow. You run with or without me. Don’t put yourself in danger. I can take care of myself.”
Yeah, that was why his face was grey and he was swaying on his feet.
“I hear you,” she said, and hoped he took that as her agreement to do as she was told.
He must have been feeling worse than he looked, because he seemed relieved at her answer and didn’t question it further.
“It’s time,” he said.
“Yeah.” Rainne took a deep breath and told herself to be positive. What could go wrong? Really? She had plenty of good karma stored. Oh, yeah, wait. She didn’t believe in karma anymore. Or stones that emitted good luck. Or auras. Actually, since she’d turned her back on her hippy upbringing, her life had simplified immensely.
“Keep low,” Alastair ordered. “Let’s go.”
He took her hand again and pulled her towards the snowmobiles. She tried to keep her eyes wide open and her mind alert. Adrenalin and fear helped keep her focused. She eyed each shadow, wondering if someone lurked there, watching and waiting. Really, what would she do if someone did step out and confront them? Her only valid option was to run screaming. In this snow, she wouldn’t get very far. And no matter what Alastair might think, there was no way she would leave him to confront the intruders alone.
Stop freaking out. There are no men hiding in the bushes. Nobody is daft enough to hang around out here in this weather.
As pep talks went, it wouldn’t win any awards, but it made her feel better. As they reached the snowmobiles, they separated. Alastair gave her hand one last squeeze, and she felt suddenly weak without him holding her. His strength, even when injured, was enough to take away the bulk of her fear. Without it, she found herself hesitant and trembling.
Each step through the snow was laborious. Each breath she sucked through the wet wool of her scarf hurt her lungs. But she kept on going. She had to. Her friends and family were in the castle. And Alastair needed her—whether he wanted to admit it or not.
She found the petrol tank cap where Alastair said it would be and unscrewed it. She pulled the zip down on her padded coat and reached inside for the strips of cloth. But she couldn’t distinguish them with her gloves on, so they had to go. She pulled them off and stuffed them in her pockets, instantly feeling the bite of cold on her already chilled fingers. She took the fabric, twisted it to make it easier to get into the tank and then fed it through the opening. It took two attempts to get it wet enough to light. She threaded it back into the tank, leaving the petrol-soaked end hanging out, ready to be lit.
Her fingers were numb from the cold. It made holding the tiny matches difficult. She fumbled with them as she tried to get one ready to strike. A gunshot went off inside the castle. Rainne jumped. The matches fell to the snow.
No. No. No.
Rainne fell to her knees, scanning the dirty snow for tiny pieces of wood and seeing nothing. She ran her fingers over the surface of the snow, but they were too numb to sense anything.
It’s okay. It’s going to be fine. Just stay calm.
She cupped her hands in front of her mouth and breathed warm air onto them.
Loud thuds came from the castle. Screams followed. Rainne’s heart pounded so fast and hard it made her dizzy.
Breathe slowly. Don’t panic. Get the matches. Focus.
She spotted the faint outline of a match and pounced on it. There were two more beside it. She scrambled to her feet. Okay. She could do this. The rag was still poking out of the tank.
Okay. Okay. Slow. Steady. Think.
But her fingers wouldn’t cooperate. They trembled and shook. They wouldn’t bend properly, stiff with cold. She struck the match repeatedly against the rough piece of card. Nothing. She let it fall and tried the second one. The same result. Rainne blinked back pointless tears of frustration.
Light, damn it. Light!
She spotted Alastair heading her way. They’d talked about this. He was supposed to head to the tree line once his machine was lit. He staggered in the snow, corrected his aim and continued towards her.
More thuds came from inside the castle. Shouting followed.
Hurry. Hurry.
Rainne reached for the last match.
