Page 86 of Ice Darling
Worry chews me up inside and makes every breath feel like a stake in my chest.
Faster. I need to go faster.
The world blurs outside my window as I drive at a speed that would rival Cordelia’s bike.
Keeping one eye on the road and the other on my navigation dashboard, I scroll my most-called numbers.
“Let me help,” Delia says.
“Thanks.” I exhale so loudly, it sounds like a whistle. “Can you call someone from the team?”
“Anyone in particular?”
“Doesn’t matter.” They’d all run to Gordie if I called, even Theilan and Watson. “The most recent on my call list.”
“That would be Max,” she notes.
I nod.
Cordelia presses the button, and the entire car fills with the sound of a phone ringing.
Max picks up on the fourth ring. “Renthrow?”
In the background, I hear the hiss of skates on ice. Max has been personally reviewing the tapes of the new trainees, and I assume that’s what he’s doing now.
“Max, I’m about an hour away from Lucky Falls, and I can’t reach Gordie or my mom. Can you drive by and check on?—”
A beeping sound interrupts my words.
I look frantically at the screen and see that Mom is calling.
“I’ll call you back, Max.” I hang up without further explanation and answer Mom immediately. “Mom, I saw your call. Are you and Gordie okay?”
“Viking, why are you yelling? Of course! Everything isfine.” Laughter bubbles just beneath her voice. “Gordie and I are having pizza.”
“Pizza?” And then what? Did someone choke on pepperoni? Did they have to call an ambulance?
“We were cooking dinner, but we burnt the chicken horribly and decided to order out,” Mom explains.
As she speaks, the frantic screaming in my brain quiets.No one’s hurt. Gordie and Mom are okay.My shoulders unwind more and more, and my foot eases off the gas pedal.
“Then why did you call me, and why weren’t you answering the phone when I called back?”
“Gordie and I were watchingThe Price is Rightwhile eating, and we didn’t hear the phone. Sorry, dear. Did we scare you?”
I rub my forehead. Rather than feel frustration at the false alarm, I feel nothing but relief. “I’m glad you two are okay.”
Mom laughs breezily. “How’s your date with Delia going? Having a nice time?”
I stiffen, becoming hyperaware of the beautiful woman in my passenger seat. “It was a business meeting, not a date.”
“Is that why you ransacked your closet and went through fifty combinations of shirts and shoes before you decided on what to wear?”
Horror flames to life in my chest, and I jolt forward, tapping at the navigation screen. “I’ll be home soon, Mom.”
“Okay, love you!”
I grunt in acknowledgment and kill the call.
