Just go.
The same voice that convinced me to sneak out this morning coaxed me to grab Pax by the sleeve and yank him down the slope. What would the guard do? Go after us? He wasn’t on skis. My gaze darted from the security guard to the peak’s edge to Pax and back to the security guard.
“Don’t even think about it,” Pax said under his breath. He shook his head, and I hesitated. The window of opportunity for escape passed.
The guard headed over to us. “I don’t know how you got up here, but this trail is closed. There’s supposed to be a storm coming in fast.”
I would’ve mentioned he also sounded like my dad, but I had a feeling he wouldn’t be as impressed as Ollie by being compared to Ethan Castillo. I also could’ve told him I knew this trail better than most of the instructors, but I was sure that wouldn’t change his mind either. “I’m going to radio the gondola operator to take you back down.”
“Yeah, sure, thanks.” I grabbed Pax’s ski jacket sleeve and gave the guard my best angelic smile. “Let’s go wait on the platform, little brother.”
Pax narrowed his eyes at me. He knew I was up to something. “Just a second ago you looked willing to push me down the mountain to get in a run—”
I shushed him. “Don’t look back. Act like one of those lost tourists.”
“Lost what? I don’t know what you’re up to, but I have a feeling it’s going to get us into a lot of trouble.” Pax followed me along the board and boot prints leading back to the Summit Lodge. When I reached the door I turned and waved at the security guard. Satisfied, the guard waved back and continued his patrol of the mountaintop. As soon as his back was turned, I yanked Pax around the entrance to the platform. “This way, hurry.”
“Where are we going?” he asked. I glanced over my shoulder. If the guard had seen us, we would’ve heard him by now. “Jessa, I’m talking to you,” Pax hissed at me.
“Trust me.”
By now we were on the other side of the station where the mountaintop stretched in a gradual downward slope. It wasn’t steep enough to gain any momentum, but it was right where I wanted to be. Signs marked with arrows directed us back in the direction we’d come.
“Trust you? If you haven’t noticed, this isn’t a trail. Did you not see the ‘Do Not Enter’ sign?” Pax stopped and looked around him. “There’s not even boot or board tracks here.”
“I saw it, and yes, I know.” I turned around and walked away from him. Snow crunched beneath my boots, untouched by human tracks. “But I know where we’re going. I promise you it’ll be fun—it’ll be worth it.”
Pax huffed, a white billow of his breath forming around his face. He glanced up. Cloud cover blocked the sun and every last inch of blue sky, and the temperature had definitely dropped. Still, the weather didn’t seem that threatening to me.
He picked up his board and followed behind me. “What could possibly be fun about a trail no one’s ever gone down before?”
I smiled and continued my trek forward. This wasn’t the same smile I gave the security guard, and it definitely wasn’t the same smile Ollie put on my face. This one was fueled by pure adrenaline. “That’s exactly what makes it more fun. To stand above the world, untouched, and find the perfect line. New scenery, natural obstacles and terrain. Just us and the mountain.”
Pax wrinkled his brow. “That doesn’t sound very fun to me.”
I stopped and looked toward the sprawling mountainside farther across the peak. Pax followed my gaze. Smooth, flawless snow covered every inch of rock except for the sprinkling of protruding boulders and winding patches of spruce trees that disappeared halfway down the mountain into a white abyss. “That’s where we’re going. Backcountry.”