The elevation had risen with every mile they’d driven west on I-70, and the temperature was definitely colder. The wind was blowing, too, and Mara was glad to get back into the warmth of the SUV.
“Tired?” Trace asked her as she buckled up her seatbelt.
“No,” she told him honestly.
“We leave I-70 here and take US-6 toward Keystone, but we don’t actually go all the way—the turnoff to my cabin comes before we get to Keystone Lake. Maybe six miles. Are you sure you’re up to it?”
Mara gave him a look of determination. “I do not like half measures,” she reminded him.
“So you said before,” he acknowledged. “Then let’s do it.”
* * *
An hour and a half later Mara finally admitted to herself she’d had enough. She’d driven to and from Trace’s cabin more than a dozen times along a winding, snow encrusted road, stopping, starting, stopping again, deliberately going too fast on a turn to provoke a skid so she could learn how to handle one. She’d learned how antilock brakes actually work with a driver’s panicked slam-on-the-brakes response to a skid. She’d learned how to steer into a skid and not against it.
And she’d learned something else, knowledge she cherished. Trace had infinite patience—when he wanted to. Not once had he lost his temper or raised his voice, not once had he been anything but a patient and kind teacher, even when she’d skidded so far off the road he had to shovel the tires free and rock the SUV back and forth to gain the traction to get them back onto the road.
But though she admitted to herself she was ready to stop, she wasn’t ready to admit it to him. So she was surprised when he stopped her from turning around when they reached his cabin once more. “Let’s call it a day,” he told her. “Don’t forget we still have to drive back this afternoon. And I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for lunch.”
Mara shifted into Park and turned off the engine, grateful for the respite. She hadn’t realized just how tense she’d been until she removed her hands from the steering wheel and found she was trembling. “How did I do?”
Trace took the keys from the ignition and pocketed them. “I’ve never had a better student,” he told her with a twinkle in his blue eyes.
Mara gave him a steady look. “How many people have you taught to drive?” she asked, fairly sure she already knew the answer. “And how many people have you taught to drive in the snow?”
A grin slashed across his face. “Well, there you have me. You’re my one and only.” She chuckled, which allowed much of her tension to bleed out, but then her face turned serious when he added, “Might be a good idea to teach you some defensive driving tactics, too.”
“What is that?”
“Ways to shake someone following you. Ways to evade capture, to keep yourself from being boxed in by bad guys out to take you down. Stuff like that.”
Mara’s heart suddenly jumped. But she wasn’t going to let fear control her. “Is that necessary? I did not think...has someone been following me? Nobody said—”
He cut her off. “No. No one’s tailing you that we know of. And as far as we know you’re not in any more danger now than you were the day you arrived. But it wouldn’t hurt to learn what to do, just in case.”
She took a deep breath and let it out slowly as the sudden fear drained away. “You are right, of course. It never hurts to be prepared. And you could teach me, I am sure. Look how you taught me to drive in the snow. You are a good teacher,” she confided. “Even Andre could not have done better.”
An expression she couldn’t read crossed his face. “Thanks,” he said. “That’s praise of the highest order.” They stared at each other for several seconds, and Mara wished she knew what he was thinking. Wished she had the courage to ask. When she finally looked away he said, “Come on, you can rest inside for a little while before we start back.”
They ate lunch in the cabin’s tiny kitchen talking about nothing in particular. Trace had showed her the entire cabin in two minutes, then had left her to go outside and turn the water on. After lunch he made them each a cup of hot chocolate, which they took into the main room. Mara shivered as she sipped the hot brew, letting it warm her insides.
“Cold?” he asked her.
She put her cup down and rubbed her hands on her arms. “A little. But I can put my vest back on.”
“I could build a fire...unless you want to head back right away.”
“No, I...I would like to stay.” She smiled hesitantly at him. “But it is your cabin. I do not want to put you to any trouble.”