Broken Trails by D. Jordan Redhawk

Author:D. Jordan Redhawk
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: P.D. Publishing, Inc.
Published: 2012-09-16T05:28:28+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

"HEY, ROOKIE."

Lainey grumbled as someone nudged her sled. She dragged herself to consciousness, peering into the dark.

Scotch grinned down at her.

Still groggy, Lainey returned the smile and forced herself to sit up. After a wide yawn, she looked around the cordoned off musher area. "What time is it? When did you get in?"

"I got here about six fifteen. It's almost ten o'clock now." Scotch squatted in the snow beside her. "I saw your time in when I got here. You're due to leave in an hour or so, aren't you?"

Lainey rubbed the sleep from her eyes, amazed she had been out of it for so long considering the cold weather. "Yes, coach," she said, throwing her legs over the edge of the sled. "I've got to get more water."

"So do I." Scotch stood and took Lainey's hand, helping her rise. "I'll go with you."

Upending the child's sled to knock the snow from it, Lainey grabbed her pots and walked with Scotch. They stopped further on at Scotch's team so she could grab the same gear. They trudged through the snow toward the river.

Now fully awake, Lainey looked around the checkpoint. A lot of the mushers had decided to take a rest break here. Not everyone, however. She speculated on who had left early. Were they driving their dogs harder than she? Or was it just the forerunners, those who had arrived before her, that had left?

"So how'd it go?" Scotch asked as they approached the watering hole.

"Not bad. I still can't keep Heldig in booties. I don't know what she does, but they fly off as soon as we're on the trail." She grinned at Scotch's laughter.

"That's nothing new. Just make certain to keep ointment on her paws."

"I will." Lainey took Scotch's hand and pulled her close until they bumped up against one another as they walked. "I've missed you."

Scotch squeezed her hand. "I've missed you, too." She craned her neck around, searching for witnesses before giving Lainey a quick kiss.

They continued on and Scotch drew water, waiting for Lainey as she did the same. As they made the return journey, Lainey asked, "How did your trip go?"

"Not bad. Ran into a mama moose about ten miles from here, but she was more concerned for her safety than into challenging the dogs."

Lainey grimaced. "I'm glad you didn't have trouble with her."

"Me, too. I don't want to suffer an incident like Susan Butcher," Scotch said, referring to the 1985 Iditarod where a musher had to scratch early in the race because an enraged moose had attacked her team. At the time, she had been considered a potential winner for that year's race and, as it was, another woman won instead - Libby Riddles, the first woman to win the Iditarod.

"No one does."

Back at the musher area, Scotch stopped at her team. "This is where I get off."

Grinning, Lainey said, "Oh, I think you'll be getting off somewhere else. In Nome if things go as planned." She chuckled at Scotch's blush. "I'll see you on the other side of Finger Lake?"

"Yup.

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