FIFTEEN
MARISSA
The Old Mill District was Bend’s premier shopping area. It was one of Marissa’s favorite spots to escape and spend an afternoon looking at the elaborate window displays. Not that she could afford anything inside the fancy shops, but it was fun to daydream. Plus, it served as a good inspiration for Yes, Cheese. An afternoon wandering through the Old Mill District always spurred new ideas for arranging boards and little bonuses to tuck into her food presentations, like hand-painted chocolate mushrooms or pretty pastel mint candies with pearlized sprinkles.
During the holiday season, the historic industrial zone turned into a high-end shopping destination, reminding Marissa of a perfectly curated social media feed. Blue and white snowflake lights and shimmery bundles of golden orbs hung from storefront windows. A Christmas tree adorned with hundreds of vintage lights sat in the center of the square. There were Victorian carolers decked out in Dickens-style costumes, serenading shoppers. The air smelled of woodsmoke from outdoor fireplaces and pizza hot from the oven.
Marissa ignored shopkeepers’ offers for special discounts and a troupe of dancing reindeer on her way to the ice sculpturegallery. The temporary art installation was commissioned by the city each year. This year, the ice carving wasn’t one piece but rather a collection. The artist had reimagined the North Pole. Cottages with shingled rooflines, an entire elfin village, and Santa’s workshop had been constructed entirely from giant sheets of ice. Given that most nights, temps in the high desert would linger in the low twenties long into spring, the whimsical ice showpiece was likely to hang around for a while.
William was waiting for her with one hand propped against a four-foot-tall ice candy cane. “It’s about time you showed up, Snow Princess.”
Marissa exhaled slowly, the firm knot in her chest loosening its grip a bit. At least he was back to playful mode. “Any luck?” she asked, not bothering to conceal the impatience in her tone. William might think this was all fun and games, but she had a singular goal: win.
“No. You made me swear on my life that I wouldn’t search without you.” He threw his hands up. “I like my life, so I’m keeping my promise. What about you? You would wait for me, too, right?”
“Of course,” Marissa lied. “Let’s get to it.” She walked around the ice village, hoping the clue would jump out at her. It didn’t. “Were there any other instructions?” she asked William after they’d given every ice castle a careful look.
“No.” William sounded mystified.
Twelve-to-fourteen-foot ice statues stood like pieces on a board game. Each had notes about the artist’s process and vision, but nothing resembled a Passport to the Holidays clue.
Marissa sighed, her breath puffing out in front of her like a billow of smoke. “You would think the next clue would be easy to spot. I mean, ice is clear, so there aren’t many places to hide a clue here.” She scanned the frosty village with its turrets and carved cobblestone pathways.
They must have the wrong place. There was no sign of Olivia or any other contestants. It was just her and William.
Damn.
They were already behind and had struck out.
“Should we look again? Maybe we missed something?” William suggested.
At that moment, a group of racers wearing T-shirts over their parkas with their team nameHoppy Holidaysappeared from the opposite side of the ice village. They stopped when they noticed William studying the sculpture. “Hey, man, that’s a dead end. We wasted a bunch of time and came up with nothing.”
“Thanks.” William gave theHoppy Holidaysteam member a fist bump. “Appreciate the help.”
“No problem. We’re calling it a night and hitting the pub for pints.” The guy pointed to the frothy beer steins on his T-shirt. “Good luck.”
“So, I guess we’re back to square one,” William said to Marissa after the team continued. “That was nice of them.”
“Was it?” Marissa was skeptical. Maybe she was a cynic, but no part of her would offer free advice to their competition. They were in a race for fifty thousand dollars, not coupons for free scoops of peppermint ice cream or a complimentary ten-minute massage.
William looked confused. “Yeah, why?”
“What if they’re intentionally trying to throw us off? Maybe they already found the clue and don’t want anyone else to figure it out. That’s what I would do. I think we need to give the entire sculpture, each little ice building, another look.”
“You are ice-cold, Snow Princess.” William’s mouth hung slightly open. “Here I thought you were an innocent grazing table food designer—or is it stylist?”
He waited for Marissa to answer. When she didn’t, he continued. “Little did I know that you’re cutthroat. You’re serious about winning this, aren’t you?”
“I thought I made that perfectly clear. Yes. We are winning this. I need that fifty thousand.”
“Twenty-five,” William corrected her. “And probably more like fifteen or sixteen after taxes.”
Taxes.Splitting the winnings sucked. But fifteen or sixteen thousand would still easily give her enough cash for first and last months’ rent, plus enough left over to get her through early spring. That was if she was careful about her spending and could bring in more clients for Yes, Cheese. Yes, she could do this! She could expand and grow the business, build it into something solid, something with real, lasting potential. She was scrappy and resourceful. She had gotten by on much less and could already picture landing gigs for summer weddings under the stars and fall barn parties with pretty, autumnal pumpkins and gourds.
“Whatever. I have a gut feeling about this. Let’s take another look. Acloselook.” Marissa didn’t wait for him to respond. She flipped on her flashlight app and scanned the first A-frame ice cottage. It made sense that the organizers wouldn’t make the clue too obvious. That wouldn’t be much fun, and a lot of money was on the line. She wasn’t even sure what she was looking for, but the other team’s casual assistance had triggered her instincts.
“You’re the boss, but what am I looking for?” William asked, crouching down in the snow to get a better look at a tiny elf-sized door.
