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I walked upstream for a bit, then decided it was time to turn back. The storm had intensified, and if I didn’t go back now, I had a feeling I wouldn’t be able to see the cabin anymore. I tried to hurry, but the snow was so thick and soft that every step I took was a struggle. I was making progress, though, so I wasn’t worried.
Until I saw movement in the snow, a few feet to my left.
Something tiny, well camouflaged in the white landscape, and moving much faster than me. In the opposite direction.
When I understood what it was, I knew I had to catch it.
Chapter Seventeen
Krampus
Could it be true? Could it be that Aura didn’t care how I looked and could see past it? Every time we touched, I could feel that she wanted me just as much as I wanted her. And even though she was shocked when she took off her mask and saw me for the first time, when she came into the barn to talk to me, she behaved totally normally.
She’d walked out a few minutes ago, maybe ten, maybe twenty, and I was feeling better. I was ready to go back to the cabin and face her in full light. I got up, made sure Snowdrop had everything he needed for the night, then left the barn with Frost in tow. The snowstorm was in full swing. Even with my perfect sight, it was hard to see a few feet in front of me. I held my head down and made my way to the cabin.
“Aura?”
I took off my coat and boots and stalked into the living room. She wasn’t there. She wasn’t in the kitchen either, and when I knocked on the bathroom door, there was no answer. I frowned and went to look for her upstairs, feeling uneasy. After five minutes of searching for her, I was downright scared. Her things were still here, but that meant nothing. If she got mad at me and wanted to leave, she would leave without her few belongings just to put distance between us as fast as possible. In this snowstorm, she wouldn’t be able to carry a bag, anyway.
I got dressed and rushed outside. Frost was with me, barking and running around me, as if to ask me what the plan was.
“We have to find her,” I said. “She can’t have gone far.”
I looked around for footprints, but it was snowing so heavily that even my own footprints from a few minutes before had been covered. I cursed under my breath and started on the path that led to town. It was the only thing that made sense. Aura had been angry when she’d left the barn, and in her anger, maybe she decided to punish me by going home.
“Come on, Frost. Help me.”
He immediately put his nose to work. We walked for a while, and I called her name a few times, hoping she would hear me.
“Aura! Where are you? If you can hear me, please come back. I’ll take you back into town tomorrow, I promise!”
What had I done? She’d been so nice to me. She’d told me she liked me for who I was and didn’t care about my looks, and I’d pushed her away. I was such an idiot! So many dating and relationships books read, and for nothing. The first chance I got, I ruined it all. I wasn’t good with people, which made sense since I’d been alone for so long, but still... I could’ve made an effort.
Now she was pissed off, and for good reason. Had I been in her shoes – or boots – I wouldn’t have wanted to have anything to do with me either. Back there, in the barn, I’d been difficult. I shouldn’t have let her leave. What was I thinking, letting her walk out in this menace of a storm?
I hoped she was okay. It occurred to me that I hadn’t looked in the greenhouse, and that made me stop in my tracks. I turned on my heel and saw that Frost wasn’t by my side anymore. I shielded my eyes from the snow and tried to see where he was.
“Frost?”
Great. The last thing I needed tonight was to lose my dog, too. I was terrible at forming and keeping relationships, it appeared.
“Frost! Where are you?”
A bark from up ahead told me he hadn’t abandoned me.
“What are you doing there?”
At first, I thought he was smarter than me and realized Aura had been in the greenhouse all along, but then I saw he wasn’t headed to the greenhouse. He’d strayed from the path that led to town and was barking and jumping to make me follow him behind the cabin.
But there was nothing behind the cabin. Just the stream that ran down from the mountain, and the dark, dense woods. Why would Aura ever go there? There was nothing to see. It was even dangerous if you didn’t know these parts.
“Frost, wait for me!”
What was I supposed to do? He was a good, loyal dog, and his nose never betrayed him. He liked Aura, and he’d never let anything happen to her.
“Okay, boy. Let’s find her.”
Chapter Eighteen
