KIRA ARRIVED AT the edge of Hill Valley at the break of dawn. It was nearly two days since Logan had been taken from her. Two days since she’d escaped Priest and Cale. Two days to reach this place. She was tired, cranky, and—a shiver rolled over her—cold as hell.
She watched a puff of exhaust roll from beneath the large van she’d just exited. It was crammed full of migrant workers on their way to the mines located in the mountains nearby. They’d been able to spare a seat for her at the last truck stop, and for that Kira had been grateful.
A small woman, probably no older than Kira, waved, her large, sad, brown eyes tugging on Kira’s heartstrings as she watched her disappear into the early morning fog.
Her name was Mary and she’d come north from Mexico to work and make extra money for her family. She’d left a small daughter behind with relatives, and on a trip that had taken less than an hour, the woman had shared her pain.
“I hope you get home to her soon,” Kira whispered.
She tugged the collar of her jacket up around her ears and shuddered. They’d passed a sign a few miles out of town that proclaimed Hill Valley as the “Diamond of the North.” The driver of the van had refused to take the road into town, mumbling something about it being out of the way and “creepy.” He’d dumped Kira on the edge of the highway and told her the walk was a good ten minutes but that he was going no farther.
Nothing would convince him to take her all the way in. Not even the offer of more money.
The air was crisp this early in the morning, and it was still dark. In the distance, small slivers of sunlight were just making their way over the tops of the trees that thickly lined the only road into town.
Kira glanced uneasily, trying to penetrate their depths. Was that a shadow there, lurking in the forest?
She whirled around, breath caught in her throat, small puffs of vapor falling from her nostrils as her heart sped up.
In the distance, the sad, lonely cry of a wolf split the eerie silence and she took off at a run, scared—terrified actually—and fighting a sense of abandonment she couldn’t help but feel. How had it come to this? Where was her hellhound?
The ache in her chest twisted. It burned and spread. Was Logan even alive?
She cried out as her feet flew over the loose gravel on the road. Had she been handed paradise only to lose it after a few weeks?
Kira ran like the very devil was on her heels. She forced all thoughts from her mind, save one—getting to Hill Valley and finding the lady in blue. Whatever the hell that meant.
She would do it. She’d promised Logan she would get there. And she would wait for him. For as long as it took.
The stitch in her side pulled hard and she was breathing heavily when she spotted something emerging from the mist. The trees seemed to shrink on both sides and she glanced around warily as she approached a bridge. It was old fashioned, the kind seen in long-ago movies. Covered, it rose up out of the eerie fog that swirled beneath it, a gaping mouth filled with darkness.
Kira paused at the edge. Unease filled her gut, but from what she could see there was no other way to cross. Forest lined each side of the bridge, and though she could hear the water, she couldn’t see it. The fog was too thick. She had no idea if the water was shallow or deep, but had no desire to find out.
She squared her shoulders and whispered, “Get your shit together, Dove.”
Kira gritted her teeth, exhaled, and moved forward. She took a few tentative steps and then, as the opening of the covered bridge rose up in front of her, the fear inside was overwhelming. She took off at a run and plunged into the darkness, fighting the fear. Fighting it hard.
A gust of wind whistled through, sliding over her and carrying voices with it. A sliver of energy sizzled along her body as her legs and arms pumped.
Or was it all in her mind?
When she emerged on the other side, laughter bubbled up inside her—crazy, hysterical laughter—and she paused, bent over, bracing herself with her hands on her thighs.
She stared down at her feet, waiting for the rush of dizziness to wash away. For her heart rate to return to normal. For the fear to subside.
Gradually she straightened and her mouth hung open. Slowly, she turned in a full circle, eyes wide in wonder.
Giant snowflakes fell from the still, dark sky, their fluffy shapes sparkling with luminescent light. They drifted down lazily like feathers, and she smiled in wonder as a single large flake landed on her nose.
Kira Dove had been born in L.A. She’d moved from that warm climate to the Regent Psychiatric Institute in Florida.
And here she was. As far north as she’d ever been, lost in a winter wonderland unlike any she’d ever imagined. She’d never seen snow. Never felt the soft tickle of a flake or witnessed the crisp, Nordic beauty of a pristine and clear snowfall.
A giggle escaped her lips as she held her hand out, watching more flakes fall until they nestled in her palm and eventually melted. Up ahead lights shone, and though she was in the middle of the most beautiful winter wonderland ever, she wasn’t cold. Or scared. She wasn’t tired or anxious.
Kira moved forward and several minutes later the lights took form. They were windows, windows lit from within, perfect little windows in several buildings that made up what she could tell was the most perfect little village imagined. If Snow White or Cinderella emerged she’d not be surprised. It was Disney-perfect.
She paused near Main Street, wondering about the quiet. There was no one about. No vehicles, though she saw several antique’s parked along the street.
“Find the lady in blue,” Logan had said. She bit her lip, her brow furrowed in concentration as she took another step forward and hopped onto the sidewalk that ran along the right side of Main Street. She passed several storefronts. All of them darkened. The barber shop. The post office. Even the bakery.
The quiet pressed on her and a nervous flutter erupted in her chest when she spied a neon sign up ahead. “The Blue Lady.” It pulsed and shone through the gloom like a beacon. Soft light spilled from inside, falling out onto the snow. As Kira approached she heard the low rumble of voices. Music.
She paused at the entrance to what was obviously a club, unsure.
“Are you going to stare at the darn thing all day or are you coming inside?”
Kira nearly jumped out of her skin and pressed a nervous hand to her chest as a young man, probably in his early twenties, appeared from nowhere. He cocked his head to the side and smiled, moving toward the door as she stepped out of the way.
“Come on, then. You’ve come this far, haven’t you?”
He was full of golden sun and fresh air. Tall, with an athletic build, the man was dressed casually, in jeans and a simple white T-shirt. His easy smile and soft blue eyes put her instantly at ease and Kira nodded as he opened the door. He winked, stepped inside …
And, with a deep breath, she followed him.