Sofia’s distressed face greeted him just as he stepped through the door. Curls had escaped her ponytail to hang around her face. “What happened? Did you find her?”
Ash shook his head. “I went to see Lucas.”
Sofia sucked in a breath.
“It was all a stupid accident. Doesn’t do us or the Christmas faire much good, but he seemed truly remorseful. Apparently, some stuff has been going down in his personal life.”
Sofia huffed. “So? That doesn’t give him the right to trespass and ruin private property! We should call the police.”
“No,” Ash said quickly. All his anger with Lucas had dissipated. “That’s not how I want to handle this.”
“All right,” Sofia said, taking a deep breath. She was obviously trying to calm herself, but her temper could be fierce. “So what’s the plan? The Christmas faire starts tomorrow. Many of the vendors have their own decorations, but without the materials for the Christmas maze, I just don’t see how this is going to work. That’s the main attraction we advertised to tourists along with the parade. I took a look in the workshop after you left. Most of the float components are destroyed too.” She pulled at the hem of her sweater, and a thin piece of fabric sprang free.
Ash stood up and put his hands on her shoulders. “I don’t know yet, Sof.” For the first time since he could remember, the goings-on of Emerald Hollow were not his top priority. “It’ll have to be good enough.”
Sofia nearly choked. “Who are you, and what have you done with my friend?”
Ash sighed. “Since we’re out of the running for Hallmark now, we’ll just have to do our best to make it a good experience. The vendors can still sell their wares to the tourists and locals. The food didn’t get ruined, at least. This year will just be much less… magical than all the others. But I guess something is better than nothing.”
Concern spread all over Sofia’s face, and she took his hand. “Ash, this isn’t all on you to figure out. We can call an emergency council meeting. Everyone can pitch in. We’ll figure something out, okay?”
Ash simply nodded, and Sofia pulled him in for a hug. He squeezed her back, and his eyes traveled toward the hallway.
It couldn’t be the end. She couldn’t be gone forever. Maybe he had missed something. When he and Sofia broke apart, he reached behind the front desk and got a key to the suite Holly had been staying in. After speeding down the hall, he entered the room, scanning it anxiously, looking for any clue to where she’d gone. On the bedside table was a backpack.
Her phone was inside, and his heart rate spiked. That she’d left them made his heart sink with worry.Where did she go without her bag or phone?
He turned on the phone, which appeared to be prepaid. It was empty. There was no password, no call or text history. It looked like she had never even used it.What is going on? Is she okay?He sank onto the bed and thought about all he knew about her.
She was from Canada. That wasn’t very helpful.Why didn’t I ever ask her the exact name of her town?
She worked in marketing for a large company. Again, he couldn't believe how stupid he had been.Why don’t I know the name of the company she works for?
And her name… he didn’t even know her last name. He could have sworn he had asked her, but each time, the question sort of left his mind before he could press further. It was as if Holly had the power to have him focus only on who she was in the present, not all the other details that made up who she was.
He shook his head, angry with himself. There had to be some way to get in touch with her. Humans didn’t just disappear into thin air.
But Holly had, just like his mom had.
Sofia’s face appeared in the doorway. “She’ll be back,” she whispered. “I can feel it.”
But Ash shook his head. He’d been sure his mom would come back, but she had left and never even seen fit to call. “I don’t even know her last name.” As the words left his mouth, the invisible weight pressed down firmly on his chest again, as if someone were stepping on him.
Comet pushed into the room and licked his hand.
Holly, with her rosy cheeks, infectious smile, and aura of peace, was gone for good.
ChapterFifty
Ash woke up early the morning of Christmas Eve. He dressed as usual then prepared to take Comet outside for the morning walk he’d been neglecting recently. That led his mind immediately to Holly, and he tried to shake it away. He forgot to put on his coat, focused only on not thinking about Holly.
With Comet at his heels, he left his room and opened the side door of the Emerald House to a massive berm of snow. His jaw dropped. True, he’d stopped checking the weather forecast every few hours, but the snow had come out of nowhere. Ash was immensely relieved by the distraction it would provide.
Comet looked from Ash to the snow and back, wagging his tail as Ash returned to his room to slip on a coat and gloves. He kept a shovel in the utility closet, and he quickly dug a narrow path to the shed, where the snowblower was stored. Comet trotted after him happily, jumping through the smaller piles of snow like a bunny rabbit bounding through a field. Ash used the snowblower to clear a wider path to his door then got to work clearing areas around the rest of the house.
The distraction didn’t work for long. He thought he’d be happy when it finally snowed, but all he wanted to do was see the happiness on Holly’s face. Part of him still insisted there had to be a way to contact her.
Maybe her running away was all some misunderstanding, like the workshop disaster had been with Lucas. She blamed herself for that, but there was no one to blame. Lucas shouldn’t have been trespassing, and Ash should have had better security, but Holly had nothing to feel bad about at all. She’d been bringing joy to him and everyone else in Emerald Hollow since the day she set foot in town. He wished he’d told her that.
