Chapter 3

I had Rachel lock the evidence away and didn't tip anyone off.

When I got home, Adrian brought me a whole pot of thick, greasy soup.

I'd just lost the baby, and the doctor had made it clear I could only eat light, bland food.

"Sophia's taking her outdoor club up to the hunting lodge this weekend. I want you to go with her and keep an eye on the people and the supplies."

One whiff of that soup and I started dry heaving.

And the joke was, he wasn't even doing it for me.

Adrian couldn't remember what my doctor had told me, but he remembered to find someone to do Sophia's legwork.

I needed to be out of his sight to deal with my passport and work visa, so I said yes.

When we left, Adrian carefully packed Sophia's medicine and coats for her. All he handed me was the group roster. "Take care of her."

Lucas also made a special trip to drop off a satellite phone. He set his own number on speed dial, then tucked hand warmers into Sophia's coat pockets, one after another.

When he walked past me, all he did was hand me a backpack full of first aid supplies. "Reception's bad up in the mountains. If Sophia can't reach me, you keep an eye on her."

The backpack pressed against my stomach, still aching from the abortion. I had to bend over for a long time before I could breathe again. Neither of them looked back.

There was snow on the mountain trail.

Sophia and her friends walked up ahead, turning around every few minutes to hurry me along.

Every few dozen steps, a heavy ache tugged at my lower belly.

At one point I stopped to lean against a tree, and she said impatiently, "I didn't beg my brother to send you, you know."

I didn't answer her. I just put my head down and kept walking.

In two more days, Rachel would have my passport.

She already had the work visa invitation. The moment the passport came through, she'd file the application for me.

Julian's deadline was closing in.

Along the way, we passed a frozen lake, and Sophia led everyone onto a side trail as if she knew the route by heart.

It hit me then that Lucas had described this place to me more times than I could count.

He'd said you could watch the sunset from the west window of the hunting lodge, and that when I came to New York, he'd be the first to bring me here.

But Sophia knew exactly which fork to take, and which window was best for photos.

Lucas had lied to me.

Long before that Christmas ball, he'd already brought Sophia here.

I stood still for a few seconds to breathe, and the ache in my belly came back.

Sophia called back to me from up ahead. "What now? Everyone's waiting on you."

I took my hand off my stomach and caught up with them.

When we reached the lodge, Sophia ignored the no-fire signs and built a bonfire in the middle of the yard so she could take Christmas photos.

Sparks landed in the dry weeds. In seconds the fire was spreading, and the flames shot up the lodge's wooden walls.

I took charge of getting everyone out. Just as the last of Sophia's friends ran through the door, the doorpost came crashing down.

I helped up anyone who'd fallen and checked every name on the roster.

Sophia was missing.

"Elena! Help me!"

Sophia was pinned inside the burning lodge, sobbing and reaching out for me.

I was already out. All I had to do was keep going, and I'd be safe.

I hesitated for just two seconds. Then I turned around and ran back in.

The doorpost was heavy.

I tried twice to lift it and couldn't. The cramps in my belly kept getting worse.

"Pull your leg out!"

We pushed together, and she finally crawled out from under the post.

Sparks kept raining down from the roof. Sophia was too terrified to walk, so I had to hold her up and drag her out one step at a time.

"Elena, don't leave me."

She clung to my shoulder so hard her nails dug into my skin.

The pain made my vision go white. All I could do was scream at her, "Run!"

When a burning beam slammed into my right shoulder, everything went black, but I never let go of Sophia's hand.