Lighted Windows

CHAPTER ONE

Montana winters are harsh and bitterly cold. Nathan McCain had been out bow-hunting for most of the morning with little success. The storm the weather service had promised for the evening, was arriving early. The clouds had been moving steadily in, piling up against the mountains, growing darker by the hour. Figuring rabbit stew and a warm fire would make an acceptable consolation prize; he clicked his bow into the bracket on his backpack, turning back. Hopefully, the storm wouldn’t last more than a day or two; he only had eight days of vacation to bag some sort of respectable game, and jackrabbit wasn’t exactly what he’d had in mind.

He increased his pace as the first feathery flakes started to fall, having been in Montana long enough to know these first soft flakes were only the warning and he needed to be inside, soon. The weather service had forecast a storm, and that meant blizzard, howling winds, hard driving snow and temperatures below freezing. Last week’s snow had left only a foot so walking wasn’t difficult. The temperature had hovered in the mid-twenties all day, cold but not dangerous to the prepared. Moving at a steady pace would work up a sweat if he wasn’t careful, but getting caught in the full force of the incoming storm would present a problem. He wasn’t worried about the blizzard, he’d be fine once he reached the cabin, having stocked up on groceries, firewood and reading materials, the ‘reading materials’ being mostly paperwork, but it all needed to be done and would keep him busy enough. There were also several books he’d been unable to find the time to read over the past two years, which meant he had a good supply of ‘company’ if the snows became a problem. All in all, he thought, a good vacation, though he’d really hoped to bag a small buck, or better, a large one, if providence allowed. He’d take a ton of ribbing back at the office if all he managed were a few fluffy bunnies. None of the guys could understand the bow-hunting thing. Give them a reliable 30.06 with a respectable scope and they’d bag their quarry every time. But Nathan was one quarter Native American, his paternal great grandmother had been Hupa Indian and he was always being ribbed about the bow-hunting being in his blood. Nathan figured it was only fair that he hunted with a bow, though he did carry his Desert Eagle fully loaded… just in case. This was true wilderness up in the mountains and in spite of what most folk wanted to believe, man wasn’t really the top of the food chain. The big matte-black gun with the nasty 50-caliber load would do fine if a mountain lion gave him the chance to use it. The guys were right about not hunting alone, most mountain lions wouldn’t give you any warning, but Nathan learned to hunt alone in the Army Rangers as a forward observer, at least that was his title. He was trained to hunt by the best the military had to offer, having been deployed to remote and violent countries several times, he was used to hunting alone, preferring it for its limited responsibilities. No other troops in his hunting party meant only himself to protect. Alone worked fine in the past and here in the mountains of Montana it was downright spiritual, though he’d be damned if he’d mention that part to the guys. After the military had continued the training his father had started, it wasn’t at all sporting to use a rifle, hence the bow; he had to give the wildlife a chance.

Nathan stopped walking and gazed in disbelief at the tracks in the snow. Now what the hell is this? The cabin was off the beaten path and fairly isolated just for the purpose of getting away from it all, although you can drive right up to the front door if you know where the roads are to get you there, but he was still a hundred yards from the cabin. So why the hell, are there human foot prints leading away from the cabin and the end of the road? Not to mention the question of who the hell had come up to bug him when everyone knew he was serious about his do not disturb order to all his men, family and friends alike?

He moved into the trees to parallel the tracks, staying out of sight. The tracks were just beginning to gather the new snow so whoever it was, had passed by before the snow started. The prints seemed a bit small for a man and Nathan’s instincts stepped up another notch as did his pace. What the hell... he breathed crouching by a tree to examine the tracks.

Looking up the rise, he saw the tracks disappear into a stand of fir trees. Thinking something was wrong with this picture, he moved quietly up the hill. He saw a figure seated with its back to a tall pine. He crouched down, watching for any sign of movement.

The figure wore bright blue ski pants and parka with a pink scarf tied around the neck. Though he couldn’t see the face, he was sure it was female, from the slightness of the frame. She was sitting against the tree with her legs out in front, hands in her pockets. The hood of the parka was pulled up snug and he had to skirt around the trees to see her face.

Oh, Shit! escaped his lips when he could finally see her face. She was pale with blue lips, eyes closed. The snow was settling on her legs and in her lap. He couldn’t tell if she was breathing, but from the look of her, if she was alive, she wouldn’t be for much longer.

Moving to her side, Nathan dropped on one knee. How the hell had she ended up all the way out here? He reached to touch her face when the eyes suddenly opened. It caught him by surprise and he nearly fell, but the eyes were unfocused, looking out across the meadow below. He slipped one arm around her back, and the other under her legs. She blinked as he braced, lifting as he stood. He staggered just a step, he was expecting a heavier weight and over-muscled the lift. He’d guessed her height at maybe five nine or ten, under six feet, she should have weighted a good twenty pounds more. He knew he had to get her to the cabin and warmed up fast, before she was beyond what help he could provide. In the late stages of hypothermia, the body starts shutting down and only immediate medical assistance would give her any chance of survival. The wind was picking up and the snow nearing whiteout conditions. The chances of getting anyone up here to take her out to a hospital were pretty slim.

Nathan began moving as fast as possible in the ever-increasing storm. His cabin wasn’t far but the added weight and speed were causing him to sweat, he couldn’t keep this pace up for long. He passed a small car, rapidly vanishing into the snow and with relief, saw his cabin ahead.

He slammed in the door, kicking it shut behind him, setting the girl down on the rug by the banked fire. Her eyes were closed again and he swore as he pitched two more logs on the coals, stripping off his outer garments, leaning the pack and bow against the wall and groping in the closet for a down sleeping bag. The only way he could see even a possibility of warming up the girl would be with his own body heat. The cabin had the fireplace, of course, and propane fired the central heat but she needed more warmth than that and much faster. He zipped open the sleeping bag and tore at her parka, throwing her icy clothing aside as fast as he could. Stripping her down to her bra and panties, letting loose a long stream of obscenities as he pulled off plain leather boots and only one pair of cotton socks. Her feet were white and stiff with cold, thoughts of bad frostbite nagged at the back of his mind. He lifted her into the sleeping bag and tore off his own multilayers of clothing, leaving nothing but his jockey shorts, and slid into the bag next to her.

Oh, Fuck me to hell! He breathed as he pulled her limp body into his. God, it was like wrapping himself around a block of ice. He zipped up the sleeping bag and positioned her against his chest, wiggling her hands into his armpits. The shock of her icy touch caused more swearing and he groaned out several more profanities as he put his feet under hers and prayed he wasn’t too late.

Come on, baby, don’t quit on me, he whispered into her hair as he began rubbing her back. He worked his way down her back, as far as he could reach, over her butt and down the backs of her thighs and back up again. There was a heartbeat; he felt it in her neck and against his chest as he crushed her to him. Her breathing was shallow but she was breathing. He kept up the rubbing and was rewarded with a deeper breath, though she hadn’t moved yet. He tightened his grip and braced himself. If she was going to come out of it, this next part wouldn’t be fun.

The body in his arms began to vibrate and suddenly seized. He heard a deep groan against his chest and the worst of the shivering began. Holding on as carefully as he could, he tried to keep her completely against himself through the muscle spasms, as her whole body withered and shook.

Hang on princess; it’ll pass in a bit. He was working at keeping her against him but worrying about how tight he was holding her. She may have been a tall one, but her bones were light. He knew he might easily break more than one if he got the pressure wrong. The shivering seemed to go on and on and garbled sounds rose from his chest. She was fighting him, although, it wasn’t really much of a match. At six five, Nathan was easily quite a bit stronger than the ice princess. Her struggles only caused him to sweat even more inside the sub-zero sleeping bag.

Come on, baby, just breathe, don’t try to talk.

N-n-no, was all he could understand but the shivering was slowly easing off. He cuddled her into his body and began to rub her back again, murmuring reassurances into her hair as her head finally settled against his chest.

Nathan was sweating profusely now. The heat from the fireplace combined with the down sleeping bag was making him uncomfortably warm. He pulled his head up out of the bag, breathing a brief sigh. He knew she was a long way from out of the woods, but her breathing and heartrate were both strong now. He moved her head back to get a look at her face. There was some color in her cheeks and the lips, while not quite red, were deepening to pink. Her eyes slowly opened and he was relieved to see they were changing to a shade of blue, an improvement from the pale gray he’d seen under the tree.

Hello princess. Can ya feel your feet? He was hot from his sweaty hair to his toenails but her feet on top of his felt much too cold.

Who... she croaked, a look of total bewilderment on her face as she blinked at him and weakly tried to pull away.

Easy, sweetheart, you’ve had a close call. Can you tell me your name? She blinked again, trying to focus. My name is Nathan. What’s your name, princess?

Name?

That’s right, what’s your name? He watched the question swirl around in her eyes.

Lilly, was all she managed before relaxing back into the sleeping bag.

Okay, Princess Lilly it is, but her eyes were closed again.

Nathan smoothed her hair and decided the worst might be over, but either way, he needed to get out of this damn sleeping bag before he melted. Wiggling and cussing under his breath, he extracted himself from the bag and gathered the girl up in his arms. The sleeping bag was wet, so he carried her into the bedroom. Flipping back the covers, he slid her into the flannel sheets, tossing the bag aside. Stopping to get a look at her feet, he was only slightly relieved. Both feet were red and swelling, the toes bright red and hot to his touch. She definitely had some frostbite but how bad remained to be seen. It was going to take a while for the swelling to go down before he could be sure she wasn’t in serious trouble. Thoughts of black toes and his Special Forces knife flashed through his mind but he determinedly pushed them away. The only thing certain now, was that Princess Lilly wasn’t going to be walking on those feet. He tucked her in, placing two small pillows from the couch next to her feet to keep the covers off of them. He knew from experience the weight of covers would be unbearable, as the swelling continued.

Back into the living room, he began picking up the mess he’d made, hanging up clothes, pulling on his jeans and long sleeved T-shirt, draping the sleeping bag over the back of the couch to dry by the fire. He retrieved the morning’s bounty, with winter-white pelts, and headed for the kitchen. Having already field-dressed the jackrabbits, he began putting together the ingredients for a stew, disjointing the hares, cutting up carrots, potatoes and crushing herbs, before he moved the big pot onto the back burner to simmer. He took the pelts out to the back porch to clean and stretch in the frames.

God damn! he swore when the cold hit him. With all the excitement of getting Princess Lilly returned to the land of the living, he hadn’t noticed the full extent of the storm. The blizzard was winding up its voice and starting to howl around the eaves of the enclosed porch. The old single-pane windows rattled loudly and weren’t much help keeping out the cold. The temperature gauge by the back door read 12 degrees. He spread the pelts on the frames but didn’t take the time to fully scrape them. It was way too cold out now to be anywhere without winter gear. He hurried back into the cabin and decided on wool socks and another log on the fire. The way the storm was going, his electricity would be out soon. Losing the electricity wouldn’t be a problem, with propane lamps and plenty of propane, but the fan on the furnace was electric, so conserving the heat in the cabin was now vital. There was a generator just outside in the shed off the back porch, but he decided not to worry with it yet. He went into the bedroom for socks and to check on his guest.

She was exactly as he’d left her, which was a relief. She’d be better off sleeping for a while if she could; those feet were going to be painful. While digging out his socks, he checked his closet for something for the her to wear, deciding on a blue flannel shirt with padded shoulders. His little sister had given him the shirt so he had to keep it, but the pink and blue stripes weren’t his preference. While the shirt would swallow her, the pink and blue suited her color choices. He laid the shirt on the bed and checked her pulse. She was lovely, with dark gold hair framing her long neck. This brought Nathan back to the original question. What the hell was she doing out there?

He’d been trying hard not to think about that particular question, trying to tell himself she’d gotten lost and wandered away looking for help. But that didn’t fit the circumstances and he knew it. She’d been walking away from the cabin, straight up the rise and right into the trees. No wandering tracks; just to the top of the rise and down against the pine overlooking the meadow. It was possible he was looking at a suicide, as much as he wished otherwise. The evidence seemed to point to a deliberate act. He ran his finger down her cheek, wondering what the hell happened to Princess Lilly.

The lights flickered and flashed and went out. It was time to light the gas lamps. The blizzard still howled outside and daylight was fading in the gloom. He busied himself with the lamps, stoked up the fire and even lit a few candles for more heat. He settled at the small table in the dining space, determined to work on his paperwork, at least make an effort to get organized so there’d be room at the table to eat since he had company. It was looking like he might actually be stuck with Princess Lilly for a while from the sounds outside. The county wouldn’t even try to clear the roads for the first few hours of a blizzard; there wasn’t much point in whiteout conditions. But even when the trucks did get to work, only the main routes would be plowed for the first day or two. The secondary roads came next and this private lane not at all. The snow blower was going to be needed and Nathan was pleased with himself for having the fore-thought to bring the machine into the screened porch. His 4x4 pickup truck and snowmobile were in the detached garage, so if the storm let up a bit, and he felt he needed to, he could get the girl out to the main road and an ambulance. He was hoping that wouldn’t be necessary.

There was a thud from the bedroom and he bolted to the door. She was on the floor, halfway into the flannel shirt, breathing hard with her head down, face hidden in her hair. He stepped to her side and put his hand on her shoulder.

You okay?

She turned her head, looking at him with startled eyes.

You shouldn’t try to walk yet, honey. Your feet aren’t in good shape.

She struggled with the shirt, buttoning it crookedly. Looking up at him she whispered Bathroom, and tried to get up.

No problem, he scooped her up in one swift move.

She gasped and threw both arms around his neck. Jesus. Her body tightened in his arms as he stepped around the bed, opening the bathroom door with his foot. He stepped to the toilet and she nearly flipped out of his grasp trying to get away from him.

Easy, Lilly, he tried to sooth her, I don’t bite. She continued to struggle, so he lowered her feet to the floor, keeping his arm around her waist.

Please, I can manage. She let go of his neck and grabbed the edge of the sink.

Okay, He stepped out of the door. Take your time. Those feet of yours aren’t going to work for a while. Call me if you need help. He kept his voice soft, but she looked panicked as he closed the door.

CHAPTER TWO

Lilly woke up in a strange bed to the sound of a howling storm. She struggled to piece together just where she was and what’d happened since she left the highway to cut across on the side roads. Her GPS said she could come this way, but the roads got more and more rural, and she’d been groggy and so tired. Not being sure what happened next didn’t really seem to matter right now. Her feet were on fire and her bladder was begging for relief. She struggled up on one elbow and realized she was only in her underwear.

Seeing the flannel shirt on top of the covers, she’d been trying to pull the shirt over herself and get out of bed when her feet hit the floor and refused to hold her weight. She’d ended up in a pile, when the sasquatch appeared. It was a large man but he looked more like a yeti against the light from the other room and she’d no idea who he was. Now she was standing on her heels, trying to maneuver in the small bathroom and relieve at least the pain in her bladder. She nearly groaned as she eased to the toilet, but looking down at her feet was a shock. They were swollen, very red and burned as if they were on fire.

She managed to rearrange her clothing, such as it was, and balancing on her heels, she ran some water in the sink, washing her hands and trying to figure out where the heck she was and why she was in her underwear. She was drying her hands and leaning on the sink when she heard him walk back into the room.

You’re going to need help to get back to bed, Lilly,

I’m fine, but she wasn’t sure how she was going to walk anywhere.

At least let me help you out to the couch. The fire is going great and with the power out, it’s the warmest place. His voice sounded reassuring.

Where are my clothes? Lily felt underdressed, even if the shirt did hang below her knees.

You might not be able to get your feet through your jeans, but I have your sweater. How about a pair of my thick socks, they should about reach your knees?

Oh God, oh God, oh God, were the only words in her head. This had to be some really weird dream because she couldn’t even imagine where this dude came from or how the hell she wound up in his bed and, Jesus help me, in his shirt!!

Okay, socks would be fine. I’m coming out.

She opened the door and attempted a few hop steps, but didn’t make it far before he appeared and without warning, scooped her up. He was carrying her into the other room and she wasn’t at all happy about it.

Hey, do you mind!

Setting her on the big leather couch, and offering the thick, white socks, he grinned at her and said, Sorry, Lilly, but you have some frostbite on those toes and the less you try to use them the better. We’ll just have to keep an eye on them, see what’s what, when the swelling goes down.

The fireplace was fieldstone and the fire was almost too hot, but Lilly pulled on the socks, gently, as it hurt to touch her toes. Looking at the fire brought back the memory of the sleeping bag and the arms around her, and she remembered! He’d said his name was Nathan and she’d been in her underwear!!

What the hell happened? She was looking over the arm of the couch, as he disappeared into the kitchen.

How do you take your coffee? I don’t have much. Wasn’t expecting company.

Cream and sugar, please.

He brought her a mug of coffee and Lilly took a tentative sip. This is good but I’m not sure about the alcohol. What the heck, Nathan?

I don’t have much of anything for pain other than aspirin and Irish Cream, by the way, would you like some aspirin? He settled into the big leather chair beside the couch, cradling his own mug. Plus, we kinda need to thin your blood a bit to help those toes heal, aspirin would help.

No, thank you, I’m fine. She made a mental note not to drink a lot of the coffee. Not a good idea to get tipsy with all this going on. How’d I wind up here?

That’s the question I was just about to ask you. He leaned forward with his arms on his thighs, looking straight at her. What were you doing out there and how’d you get here?

Lilly sighed. My GPS said I could get down to Missoula on the back roads and I was trying the shortcut.

GPS? Did the GPS tell you to walk up the hill and sit down in a storm?

I’d been driving for ten hours straight and needed to pull off and walk around a bit before I fell asleep at the wheel. I just walked up the hill and there was this beautiful meadow with big feathery flakes drifting down, so I sat down to enjoy the meadow.

You just decided to take a nap in a blizzard?

I wasn’t napping! It was such a lovely meadow, and I was really tired, I only closed my eyes for a minute.

Lilly, why were you really out there?

I just told you. I was enjoying the meadow.

Were you planning to freeze to death, Lilly? His gaze was intense.

She leaned back into the couch and looked at him over her mug, No, I’d no plans to do anything but rest a bit and press on. What’s with the third degree?

It’s my job, and napping in a blizzard is called suicide, here in Montana.

Your job? What are you, a cop or something? She sipped at the coffee, avoiding his eyes.

Yes, I’m a cop, in Missoula by the way. Is there a problem here? he set his mug on the side table.

Lilly rolled her eyes and heaved a big sigh. Well, of course you are.

Is that why you were out there, Lilly? Do you have some legal problems?

"No, officer, I don’t have legal problems, except getting lost and winding up trapped here with you!"

In case you missed it, sweetheart, you nearly died out there! If I hadn’t come along just when I did, you’d be a popsicle by now.

I don’t recall asking for your help.

Were you trying to commit suicide, Lilly?

No! I just told you, I was tired, the meadow was lovely. I was just lost. This is no big deal, why are you so worked up? She forced herself to look at him.

How are your toes? You had to know there was a storm coming?

I just stopped; just needed to wake up a little, she almost whispered, I just needed to stop and get my bearings. I’d heard there was a storm coming, but not until later.

Where are your parents, Lilly?

She gave a small snort and the corner of her mouth twisted up, I’m twenty-six years old. I can take care of myself. She rolled her eyes at him.

Wow, twenty-six, that is old. I’m guessing you’re not from around here, are you?

No, originally from Portland, Oregon, but I’ve a job offer from the Missoula Office of Emergency Services as a 911 dispatcher. I kinda need to be in Missoula in the next few days. She settled back against the cushions, pulling the now dry sleeping bag off the back of the couch to cover herself.

"Well, you might get to Missoula when this storm lets up, but you really need to see a doctor about those feet. May I have a look? How’s the