“Stella, can I take a look at your arm?”
“I think it’s broken,” the girl said. “I heard a pop and it hurts a lot. I think I even fainted for a minute.”
The boy groaned and buried his head in his hands.
“What happened?” Connor gently took the girl’s arm. Removing her jacket would hurt too much, and he hated to upset her more by cutting off her pretty pink jacket. He would leave that to the medical staff.
“I stopped to look for my dad,” she said. “He was skiing ahead of me.”
“Where did you stop?” Connor asked.
“Right here where we’re sitting.”
He looked up the slope. Anyone coming from above wouldn’t have been able to see the girl until they were over the hill. A less experienced skier or boarder probably wouldn’t have been able to stop in time to avoid hitting her. “What are you going to do?” the girl asked.
“I’m going to strap your arm to your body to hold it really still,” Connor said. “That way, it will hurt less. Then we’re going to put you in a toboggan and wrap you up warmly, and you’ll get a free ride down to the clinic where a doctor can examine you and decide what to do next. Is that okay?”
She nodded. “But what are you going to do about my dad?”
Connor followed her gaze to the man with the dark mustache who glared at him. “Mr. Chandler, we need to stabilize Stella’s arm, then transport her via toboggan to the clinic at the base area,” he said. “Can you ski down behind us?”
“What are you going to do about him?” Chandler jutted a finger toward the boy.
Connor looked to the snowboarder. “What’s your name?”
“Aiden Welch.”
“Aiden, you did the right thing,” Connor said. “You took responsibility, and you stayed with Stella.”
“He could have killed her,” Chandler roared.
“Aiden, you know the skier’s safety code says you’re always responsible for being aware of skiers or boarders in front of or downhill from you,” Connor said.
The boy nodded. “I know. But I didn’t see her until it was too late.”
“That’s why it’s important to be extra cautious when coming over blind hills.” It was a lesson a lot of people learned the hard way.
“It really wasn’t his fault,” Stella said. “It’s not like he plowed into me on purpose.”
“Aiden, will you promise me to be more careful in the future?” Connor asked.
“Yes, sir. I promise.”
“Then I’m letting you off with a warning today. But don’t let it happen again.”
“A warning!” Chandler shouted. “I’ll sue.”
“You’re the one who should have been watching out for your child,” Mr. Welch said. “Instead of skiing ahead of her.”
Both men were on their feet again. Brian and Nina moved in.
“Need some more help?” Patroller Renee Castro knelt across from Connor. Petite and wiry, Castro was the smallest—and fastest—patroller.
“Let’s get this arm wrapped,” Connor said.
“I’ll take care of her,” Renee said. “You get the sled ready.”
“Daddy!” Stella wailed.
