The dog in question had flopped onto her side, eyes closed. She was definitely a striking pup, her pale gold hair tipped with black, black socks, black upright ears and muzzle, and brown eyes that appeared to be lined with kohl.
Lily had light brown hair worn in a braid that hung from beneath her black ski helmet, an accessory that obscured most other features. So yeah, she was sure Shelby was definitely the one attracting all the attention as the pair traveled through the resort.
Scott stepped over Shelby to reach the middle of the patrol shack. In addition to the four dogs, the small space was crammed with seven patrollers, half a dozen pairs of skis, two toboggans, several backpacks, orange cones, rolls of snow fence, coils of yellow nylon rope, four shovels, a bundle of avalanche probes, two cardboard boxes overflowing with ski patrol T-shirts and an inflatable palm tree. “Sergeant and Donaldson, you’re at Buttermilk Basin this morning,” he began, reading from a clipboard. “Iverson and Castro, I want you at the Glades. Milk Run is closed to the public for race practice, so you’ll want to keep an eye on that. Raz, I want you here at post one. Alton, you’re with me at Top of the Mark.”
Lily kept her expression neutral, even as she groaned inwardly. Shelby raised her head and met her gaze, always in tune with Lily’s mood. Scott had an excellent reputation as a skilled patroller, but he had all the charm of a drill sergeant. At least his dog, Hunter, was a genuine sweetheart. The big black Lab stood now and stretched, front and back, then shook vigorously, his patrol harness jingling.
“Weather reports show a storm coming in after seven tonight.” Scott continued reading from the clipboard. “They’re calling for three to six inches overnight. Five a.m. start tomorrow.”
This elicited groans from the gathered patrollers, though the early callout was routine on mornings after a snowstorm. They would spend hours on avalanche mitigation before the slopes could safely open to visitors.
“I’ll have the ammo ready.” Connor Donaldson, Farley’s handler, was in charge of the explosives used for triggering controlled slides in inbound terrain.
“Alton.”
Scott’s voice had her sitting at attention. “Yes, sir?”
“We need to schedule Shelby’s Level B certification,” Scott said.
“Shelby already has her Level B certification,” Lily said. “She received it last May.”
“That was at Kingdom Mountain,” Scott said.
“Yes.” Lily had patrolled at Kingdom Mountain ski resort, west of here, for six years before the resort had shut down last spring, the last year with Shelby. They had transferred to SkyCrest, owned by the same corporation, this fall.
“I want you to recertify for SkyCrest,” Scott said.
The room had fallen silent, everyone watching and listening to this exchange. “Shelby was certified by Wasatch Backcountry Rescue,” Lily said. “She shouldn’t need to be recertified.”
“She’s a new dog for us,” Scott said. “I have no idea of her capabilities. I want her recertified. I’ll set up the test in a few weeks and get back to you.”
She stared, speechless. Part of her wanted to protest that he was only doing this because he hadn’t wanted Lily and Shelby on his team to begin with. Management had announced the addition to patrol without consulting him and that, apparently, had irritated him. That didn’t give him the right to take it out on her and her dog. But pointing this out wasn’t going to win her any points with him. He was going to make her prove herself. She stood. “Fine,” she said. Shelby rose also. “We’ll be ready.”
Her gaze locked to his for a brief moment. She was prepared to see a lot of emotions in his gaze—anger, disdain or even dismissal. What she didn’t expect was the flicker of heat his direct stare sent through her. His hazel eyes weren’t exactly friendly, but they were definitely—interested. Scott scrutinized her as if she was a puzzle he was trying to figure out. As if hewantedto figure her out.
She looked away as he dismissed everyone with his usual “be careful out there.”
“I’ll meet you up top,” she mumbled, and hurried out of the lift shack, Shelby at her heels.
“Hey, Lily!” She paused and waited for Connor to catch up. Farley tackled Shelby and the two dogs rolled in the snow, then popped up and shook themselves, panting happily.
“Don’t let Linden get to you,” Connor said. With his shaggy ginger hair and clipped beard, he bore a passing resemblance to his dog. They definitely shared the same soulful brown eyes.
“What is his problem?” she asked. “He treats me like I’m a brand-new trainee who’s never been on snow before.”
Connor grimaced. “I think it’s because you’re the only dog handler he didn’t personally select and train.”
“So he knows more than Wasatch Backcountry Rescue and C-RAD?” Colorado Rapid Avalanche Deployment was the premier organization in Colorado for training and deploying avalanche dog teams for immediate response to avalanches anywhere in the state. Lily and Shelby had completed multiple classes with WBR and C-RAD.
Connor shrugged. “Scott founded the dog program here. It’s his baby.”
“That doesn’t give him license to act like a jerk.”
The man himself exited ski patrol headquarters in time to hear this announcement. His head snapped up, and he turned in Lily’s direction. Now she’d done it. Well, she didn’t care if he knew what she thought of him. She raised her chin, defiant, then planted a pole and skied away, Shelby bounding alongside.
As Lily approached the head of the line the liftie, Desi, signaled for the next group of skiers to wait and waved Lily and Shelby forward. The dog jumped into the lift chair, and Lily settled beside her. Shelby lay down, her head in Lily’s lap, as the chair rose into the air. Lily buried her gloved fingers in the thick ruff of fur around the dog’s neck. She reached the mid-mountain lift and rode it up to Top of the Mark, the highest lift-served terrain. This was the view touted in all the advertising for SkyCrest resort— snow-crowned peaks set against a turquoise sky. In addition to the lift-served runs accessed from “the mark,” gates provided access to acres of hike-to terrain.
At the top of the lift, the chair slowed. Lily stood as her skis made contact with the ground and Shelby bounded gracefully off the chair and toward the ski patrol shack at the edge of the tree line a few yards away.
