Ryan snorted. “We were trying to hear the ring. I’d gotten through to Collins earlier. It was worth a shot.”

“Fuck. I keep it on vibrate.”

“I knew it!” Ryan exclaimed and clutched at his stomach as if he could stop the pain from laughing too hard.

“The only sound it ever makes is that damned chime every five minutes when I’ve got a voice mail. Do you know how many times I’ve tried to get that annoying noise turned off? You can’t do it on this phone.” Alex’s voice choked as he fought to control another laugh.

Ryan’s shoulders shook. “That damned chime might’ve saved your life. We might’ve given up if I hadn’t heard it. Everyone thought I was hearing things.”

Alex’s nose began to run from laughing. He wiped at it. Another sign he was thawing out. He closed his eyes and smiled. Damn, it felt good to laugh and shoot the shit with someone. He hadn’t done this since…he couldn’t think of the last time. A subtle pounding in his head reminded him why. He’d cut himself off from everyone.

He had to start living again. Doing something with his life. Not hiding.

He’d been given a second chance. If it hadn’t been for the determination of this team… He shivered as a chill rocketed through his nerves and Brynn’s smiling image crossed his mind. She was the type of person who touched lives and made them brighter, lighter. She and all the guys had potential to make big differences in the world.

Alex stared at the tiny stove, chest tightening.

He still had to figure out what to do if he found Darrin Besand. If Darrin was in these woods, Alex might get a chance he never would have had out in the real world. He could meet the man face-to-face, no guards, no bars.

What would he do? His goal suddenly wasn’t as clear as it had been. Could he truly kill a man in cold blood?

Doubt wrapped around him like a cold coat.

Is that Alex laughing?

Brynn stopped and cocked her head. She recognized Ryan’s laughter, and the lower-pitched laugh had to be Alex. Turning, she spotted Thomas and Jim digging in various places, still searching for the missing packs. They’d already partly dug out the cockpit. It had ended up a couple of hundred feet down the mountain, the pilots still strapped in their seats. The marshal had been tossed out, but they found him nearby and moved him back in with the pilots. They’d thought the cockpit was twenty feet under until Thomas had spotted some white metal sticking up out of the snow. Why couldn’t their packs have a strap or two poking up out of the snow to see?

She paced a grid pattern, studying the snow for any signs of their packs. She’d sent Ryan in to rest and to keep an eye on Alex. Hopefully they’d keep an eye on each other. Ryan was a walking ghost. He’d insisted on climbing to the ridge to retrieve his own pack, and it’d taken him three times as long as it should have. The vomiting seemed to have stopped, but she’d seen him frequently touch his abdomen like something still burned. He refused to eat. Could he hike out tomorrow? If they went slowly?

She kicked a fir branch out of her path.

Their walk out of the forest was going to be twice as long if they went down to the railroad river crossing. Maybe they should go back and check on the river footbridge. Maybe the river level had dropped enough. But would the footbridge be stable? It had been slammed with the force of a runaway semi. A shallow wave of dizziness swept through her brain, bringing back the image of the raging water. She breathed deeply and focused on the snow, putting one foot in front of the other. Water didn’t have to be raging to do damage. She knew that all too well.

She dropped to her knees and dug at a shadow under the snow.

A stick.

She continued her rhythmic steps, mentally inventorying their supplies and needs. Her pack held enough food for her. Ryan’s pack held three times as much, but he ate three times as much. Usually. Their food situation was pretty good. The human body could go for weeks without food. Not very efficiently, but well enough for their purposes. Water was abundant. Everyone was dressed for freezing temperatures. And the plane made an excellent shelter for the night. Too bad they couldn’t drag it with them for the next few nights. Now everyone just needed to stay healthy.

Alex looked like he was going to be fine. He’d said he had awoke underground and found breathable room around his face. He’d said he didn’t know how long he was conscious while below the snow. He’d looked away as he said the words, and she had a hunch he knew all too well.

A shudder rippled through Brynn’s chest.

Could she have handled that terror? She’d been aboveground during the avalanche and was going to have nightmares for weeks. She snorted. Alex would have nightmares for the rest of his life. What if they hadn’t found…She firmly placed the thought out of her head.

Kiana’s frustrated barking startled her, and she glanced around for her dog. Out of sight. Probably spotted some small prey that’d darted up a tree and out of reach. As the dog had dug beside her on that first hole of Jim’s, Brynn had been so certain Kiana believed there was a person below the snow. She’d never done any formal rescue training with the dog. Maybe she should. Maybe they would’ve found Alex sooner.

Thank God he was OK.

A rush of confusion and relief swamped her. The same feelings that overpowered her every time she thought about him. She twisted her lips and glanced up the hill at the piece of plane that still sounded with bellows of male laughter at odd intervals. A sort of zing had rattled through her nerves when Alex had made eye contact for the first time at base camp. A warmth had started in her stomach.