Forever Wild(39)

“We’ll start by following the river north and then fanning out along those trails,” Jonah states, sparing Bj?rn nothing more than glare—as if to dare him to counter—before heading over to me. “You gonna stay here?”

“No. I’m going with you.”

He shakes his head. “It could be a long night, Calla.”

“I don’t care.” I reach for him, squeezing his hand. “If you’re out there all night, then so am I.”

He nods. “Okay. But you should add another layer or two.”

Bj?rn walks over, his coat and hat in his hands. “What machine can I take out?”

Jonah frowns, with surprise or irritation, I can’t tell. “There isn’t one. We only have the two, and Mabel’s got one of them.”

“Where can we find another?”

“I don’t know, and I don’t have time to look for one for you.” Definitely irritation.

“What can I do, then?”

“I don’t know. Keep the fire burning.”

Bj?rn scowls. “But—”

“I don’t have time for this.” Jonah tugs his hat over his head. “Calla, you got two minutes.”

I run up the stairs to find more layers.





Jonah’s body is rigid against mine as we sail up the driveway toward the house, and I know it has nothing to do with the chilling cold that has seeped into our bones.

We can’t find Mabel or Kelly.

I lost count of the number of people out, riding the trails for hours. But there’s not a trace of the girls to be found, the falling snow and blowing wind covering whatever tracks they might have made.

“I hate being on the ground like this. I wish I could use my plane,” Jonah snarls, peeling off his helmet.

My heart beats in my throat as we climb the steps, our limbs numb from the ride. The buzz of approaching snowmachines trails behind us. I don’t have to look to know it’s the McGivneys, who have no intention of leaving us tonight, whether we want them to or not.

This is becoming our routine—tragedy strikes and we congregate. It would be uplifting if not inspired by such horrible events.

Agnes is waiting for us at the door. The grief on her face says she has already received the grim news from the state troopers that they’ve called off the search until morning due to poor visibility.

“I’m gonna gas up and go back out on my own,” Jonah says by way of greeting.

“No, you’re not!” we both respond in unison, followed closely by similar reactions from Astrid and my mother.

“You can’t go out again tonight. Look at you both. You’re frozen!” My mom peels my stiff, snow-caked scarf from around my neck as if to make her point.

“And there are two teenaged girls out there, frozen!”

“Jonah!” Astrid scolds.

He smooths a palm over his forehead and tempers his tone. “I’m sorry. But I can’t sit around here while she’s out there.”

“And I can’t have you and Bj?rn going rogue tonight.” There’s desperation in Astrid’s voice.

Jonah’s eyes bulge. “What do you mean? Where the hell did Bj?rn go?” He scans our living room, as do I. Only a weary-looking Simon remains, quietly sitting at the dining table by the dim cast of an oil lamp. All the food has been tucked away and the kitchen is spotless.

“He was upset that he was left behind while everyone else went out.” Astrid hesitates. “He needs to feel useful in situations like this, and you made him feel old and useless.”

Bewilderment mars Jonah’s face. “You’re kidding me, right? I don’t give a shit about Bj?rn’s ego right now. You shouldn’t, either.”

“I’m explaining what happened.” Astrid holds a hand up to stall Jonah’s rant. “Kelly’s mother phoned here to see if we’d heard anything. Bj?rn answered. She mentioned not being able to go look for her daughter because of her two young children at home. So Bj?rn asked if he could borrow her snowmachine to go out and join the search. She agreed to lend it to him.”

Jonah looks like his mother slapped him across the face. “Tell me you didn’t let a sixty-nine-year-old man from Norway go out into the Alaskan wilderness in a blizzard, alone?”

“I tried to stop him,” Astrid begins.

“He’s not alone. Roy went with him,” Agnes says calmly. I don’t know how she’s keeping her cool at a time like this. “Roy came by about an hour after you guys left. He heard all the engines and thought it might have something to do with Mabel, so he came looking for an update. When he saw how determined Bj?rn was to go out there, he said he’d go with him. Roy drove him over to the Prichards’ to get the snowmachine and off they went.”

Jonah rubs the back of his neck. “At least he’s not completely alone.”

“He’s in good hands if he’s with Roy,” Muriel says, stepping inside to catch the tail end of the conversation. “He’ll make sure they get back.”

Astrid offers her an appreciative smile. “They took Mabel’s sweater with them. He said Oscar is especially good with scents.”

“In this weather?” Jonah runs a hand through his mussed hair. “Not that good.”