Page 65 of Believe In Us

We reached the viewing point. Still no sign of him, except there were footsteps in the snow. “Somebody has walked here recently, there’s no doubt,” Kendall said. “But do we think it’s Lincoln? This one is common with guests too.” She called back to the group to let them know we suspected he might be nearby. After that, she looked over at me. “We need to start calling his name. I’m going to go this way.” She pointed ahead. “You cross back where we came from. I’m not going further than earshot from you, so if you hear anything, just holler loud. Okay?”

Tromping along with us were Kendall’s two dogs, both three-legged huskies named Travis and Harriet. They bounded through the snow with ease. “Harriet’s going to go with you, and Travis is going to stay with me. He’s a mama’s boy,” Kendall said, looking down at Harriet. “You stay with Chloe.” I kid you not, Harriet immediately practically pinned herself to my hip, looking up at me expectantly. “She’s a good girl,” Kendall added. “Use your whistle and call for Lincoln.” Kendall headed off with Travis at her side.

As I made my way back down, calling his name and blowing the whistle, Harriet stayed close. We hadn’t gone too far when she stopped abruptly, looking around before she began bounding down the steep hillside.

“Kendall!” I hollered. “Harriet is going down off the trail.” I used my whistle again. “Do you smell Lincoln?” I asked as I watched her go, noticing breaks in the snow on the way down, not quite tracks but evidence of something having disturbed it. “I hope she found him,” I whispered to myself.

I heard Kendall calling, closer now. “If it’s down that hill, don’t go. It’s very steep.” I kept calling Lincoln’s name in earnest, in between blowing the whistle, and eventually heard the faint sound of his voice calling back.

“I’m fine, Chloe.” The relief of it nearly buckled my knees. “Harriet’s here!”

Standing there in the snow, I burst into tears.

“Don’t come down this way,” he hollered, his voice faint, but clear. “Kendall will know what I mean. Go further down and loop back to me.”

Within a few minutes, Travis caught up to me with Kendall a little behind him. “He said don’t go down this way. He said you would know what he meant,” I explained.

“I think I do. It’s not really a trail, but it looks like he fell down here. Harriet’s so smart.” She looked down at Travis. “You’re going to find him on the other side.”

Travis stayed with us as we made our way back down before Kendall paused to assess, spinning in a slow circle in the snow as she eyed the trees. “This is probably our best bet. All right, go find Lincoln and Harriet.” As if on cue, Harriet appeared, yipping at Travis, and he bounded through the snow behind her. “They’re going to break the trail for us.”

“Can I just go?” I asked.

Kendall glanced around and down at her phone. “Oh, thank God, we’ve got reception here. You start following them. I’m going to call back, but I’ll stay right here in case something happens.” She used her whistle, and Lincoln called back.

“I’m here, Chloe.” His voice sounded closer this time.

“It’s Kendall,” she hollered in return. “Chloe’s following the dogs to you.”

On the heels of a shaky breath, I followed the dogs. They were moving faster than me through the snow. Even with three legs, they still had one more than I did, not to mention being considerably more nimble. With my anxiety whizzing on high speed inside, it was impossible to say how long it took me to reach him.

Lincoln was making his way through the snow, following Travis and Harriet, who were spinning in circles ahead of him.

“Lincoln!” I said, trying to hold back my tears.

“Hey, stop right there. I’m going to catch up to you,” he called.

He was a little shivery when he reached me. “Are you okay?” I asked instantly.

“I’m fine. I’m going to have a hell of a bruise, but I’m okay.” Only then did the dam on my tears break, and I full on sobbed.

“Hey, hey, I’m okay,” Lincoln tried to reassure me.

“I know you’re fine, but you’re not allowed to go this far again,” I managed in between sniffles.

“I promise I won’t. We’ve got to keep moving though. I didn’t put on enough clothes.”

“Oh, no! Are you hypothermic?” I didn’t wait for his answer and began urging him forward, along with the dogs.

Chapter Forty

Chloe

Pinky swears

Lincoln’s shivering was so obvious, and he kept clenching his jaw to keep his teeth from chattering. I tried to tamp down the sense of panic and the urge to scold him. I loved to boss my way through a crisis, but I knew it wouldn’t help.

“We’re going to get you warm soon,” I said.