Daughters of the Lake(47)

“That’s right, Peter,” Simon said into the phone, his voice low. “We were sitting and talking, and she just started shivering. Her lips are blue! She’s freezing. And now she’s sort of—I’m not going to say incoherent, but loopy. She keeps repeating things we’ve talked about. It happened all of a sudd—There is? So what should I—? Okay. We’ll do that. Yes. I will.

“Peter says there’s a virus going around,” he said to Kate, who was still murmuring about bodies and cold water.

He took hold of Kate’s hand. “Oh my God. You’re like a block of ice.” He pulled her to her feet. “Come on. I’m taking you upstairs and getting you into a warm bath. I didn’t put tubs into every guestroom for nothing.”

“I’m sorry to be such a b-bother,” Kate murmured as Simon led her up the stairs. He could feel her legs shaking with each step.

When they got to Kate’s room, he flipped on the light and made his way to the bathroom. He turned on the water in the tub and sprinkled in some soothing bath salts that turned the water bluer than Kate’s lips.

“This thing has a heater in it so you can stay in the water as long as you want, and it won’t get cold,” he said. “Oh, come on. Fill, already!” This he directed at the tub. In a few moments the steaming tub was full. “Let’s get those clothes off,” he said to Kate, unbuttoning her shirt.

“Wait a minute . . . ,” she mumbled.

“Oh, for heaven’s sake, I’m a gay man and your blood relation,” he laughed. “I couldn’t be less interested in what you’ve got under your clothes.”

“T-t-true.” She managed a laugh. “But I’d like to keep some mystery.”

“Then you get in there yourself,” he said. “But be careful. I’ll be right outside the door.”

Kate peeled off her clothes and lowered herself into the tub, the water sizzling as her icy-cold body came into contact with it. Kate submerged herself up to her neck, curled herself into a fetal position, and rested her head on the side of the tub, closing her eyes and taking in the delicious scent of the bath salts.

Simon poked his head into the room. “Don’t fall asleep in there.”

“I won’t,” Kate said through a yawn.

“Seriously,” Simon said, turning on as many lights as possible. He grabbed a book from the nightstand and settled onto the bench in the bathroom. “I’m not leaving you alone to have your head slip under the water. You drowning would put a damper on our visit.”

Kate chuckled but couldn’t open her eyes.

“You just relax, and I’ll read,” Simon said. “When you’re ready to get out, let me know.”

“I’m not so cold now,” Kate said, her eyes still closed lightly. She was indeed feeling warmer, but she was swimming in thoughts that were not entirely her own.

When Kate had been lying in the tub for nearly an hour, a rosy color came back to her cheeks. Her eyes fluttered open, and she looked around.

“Well, that was dramatic,” she said.

“You love to be the center of attention.” Simon smiled. Then, more seriously, he asked: “How are you feeling?”

“Better,” Kate said. She sat up and leaned against the tub. “I’m warm now, but I still feel pretty weak. What happened?”

“Peter says it’s probably a bug that’s going around town right now,” Simon said. “He hadn’t heard of anyone reacting like you did, but chills and fever are not uncommon. And honey, you just took the chills to a new level.”

“It was so bizarre,” Kate said, rubbing her arms. “Suddenly I just felt cold. Ice cold. Deep inside. I can’t really properly explain the feeling. I’ve never experienced anything like it.”

“Do you still feel it?”

Kate considered this. “A little, I guess,” she said. “But nothing like it was before. I remember once at the paper, I was covering a New Year’s Day celebration. This club in town called the Polar Bears raised money by plunging into the icy lake. I did it with them to write about it. It’s just like what I felt tonight. It was as though I had suddenly jumped into ice-cold water.”

Simon eyed his cousin. “You know, we were right in the middle of talking about how those bodies were preserved in the cold water.”

“I know,” Kate said. The two cousins held each other’s gaze.

“That tells me you should step back from this thing a bit,” Simon said. “You’re getting too involved. You’re internalizing. I don’t like it, Kate. It feels dangerous, somehow.”

Kate didn’t know what to say to that, but Simon saved her the trouble. “You hop out of this tub and get into your jammies. I’ll go make you a cup of tea.”

“I should really walk Alaska,” she said, her chin on the rim of the tub.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Simon said. “I will do the honors tonight.”

“You don’t have to do that,” Kate protested. “Alaska is my responsibility, I should . . .”

But Simon cut her off. “Stop it. It’s getting cold outside, and you could catch a chill if you go out into the night air. That’s the last thing you need. Besides, I actually like parading around town with a dog twice as big as an average timber wolf. Now, I’m going to get that tea.”