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“Who’s this?” The belligerent question came from the Carhartt guy, who she now saw was older, probably in his sixties, with gray hair and beard, and extremely fit.
“She’s with me, Luke,” said Sam. “That’s all you need to know.” He grabbed her bag from the plane and set it on the ground. He handed her the handle, then put a protective arm around her.
Honestly, she appreciated the fact that he didn’t share her name with this hostile-looking stranger. But she still couldn’t resist the opportunity to tease him a little more. “Aren’t you going to carry it for me, Sammy?”
“Sammy?” Luke looked from one to the other of them, then let out a bark of laughter. “Where’d you find this one?”
“Awfully personal question, my friend.”
The way Sam said the word “friend” made Molly think they definitely weren’t friends.
Luke scrutinized Molly for a long moment. Even though his eyes showed nothing, she got the sense that something about her bothered him. Maybe everything, from her Valentino coat to her red leather tote bag.
“Did you need something, Luke? I don’t believe I have any orders for you this time.”
“No. You shouldn’t have anything on that plane for us. Not any of us.” He narrowed his eyes in something like a warning.
“And I don’t. You can take a look if you want. Rover’s an open book.”
After a long moment, Luke shook his head. “I’ll take you at your word.”
“Good.”
Even though Sam wore a smile, the air felt thick with tension. Molly decided she should do something girlfriend-ish about it. “Honey, are we going to stand here all day? I want to see more than a landing strip.”
“Oh yeah? What are you trying to see?” Luke asked.
“I mean…everything.” Really, she just wanted to see Lila, but there had to be something else. She cast around for a good answer. “Super excited to see the Ice Falls.”
Behind his beard, Luke’s expression finally shifted. To what, she couldn’t say. Maybe wariness? Suspicion? The next thing he said, after a long, long pause, took her totally by surprise.
“We’re out that way. The two of you should come out for a visit.”
Given the strange tension between the two, she expected Sam to give a quick, polite rejection. Instead, he said, “That’s a gracious invitation. Maybe after this storm rolls through.”
Luke gave a nod and strolled off, hands in his pockets, toward a small patch of snowy gravel that must be the parking lot, judging by the two trucks waiting there.
As soon as he’d driven off, Molly let out a whoosh of breath and separated herself from Sam. “What the hell was that?”
“That’s Luke Chilkoot. Keep your distance, if you’re here long enough to run into him again.”
“But he just invited us to his place.”
“He did. But if you see him on your own, keep your distance,” he repeated firmly. “It’s unlikely, since the Chilkoots don’t come into town much. And that’s all I’m going to say about that. You won’t be here long enough for a visit to a reclusive backwoods family anyway, right?” He cast his gaze up at the darkening sky. “No flying tomorrow, but maybe in a day or two.”
“I’ll let you know,” Molly said evasively. “Do you have a cell number or something?”
“No cell service out here.”
“What?”
All thoughts of Luke Chilkoot and that weird encounter evaporated. Why hadn’t any of her research materials mentioned that little detail? Panic swamped her. She looked wildly at the little plane that was her only lifeline back to a reasonable place that had a cell tower.
“There’s Wi-Fi,” Sam added quickly. “Satellite. Are you okay?”
“Wi-Fi.” She repeated the word like an incantation. “Where is the Wi-Fi?”
“A few places in town. The general store, the community center, the new hippie coffee shop. I think the Lamplight Motel has Wi-Fi. And of course once summer starts, all the lodges do.”
