Ash expertly prepared the cocoa then passed it to Holly, joining her at the restaurant counter. She sipped it gratefully, letting the delicious, familiar flavor calm her.
The hot chocolate took her back to how their story began, with her trying it at the Emerald House on her first trip to Emerald Hollow and noticing it tasted exactly like the hot cocoa at the North Pole. The memory gave her the courage to pursue the thing that was nagging at her.
“So, Ash, there’s something I’ve been wanting to discuss with you.”
Ash paused eating and looked at her expectantly. Holly’s chest squeezed. If she could sweat like a human, she guessed she would be perspiring at that moment.
“It’s about—” She looked around and lowered her voice, even though the restaurant had been empty for hours. “It’s about my magic.”
“You don’t think the elves have been snow tunneling again, do you?” Ash asked, his voice still completely casual, as if they were discussing the weather. Then his eyes widened. “Is that what that surprise snow dusting was about?”
Holly shook her head. “I don’t know. Maybe. But that’s not what… well, notexactlywhat I wanted to talk about.”
Ash must have sensed her anxiety, because he took her hand. “Are you okay?”
“It’s not me I’m worried about. It’s you.” Her voice was barely above a whisper.
“Me? I’m fine, Holly. What’s bothering you?”
She took a deep breath and knew it was time to get it all over with. “I think possibly… I don’t know for sure, but I have a suspicion—” She paused to take a sip of her hot cocoa, letting it fortify her. “I think it’s possible that your mom disappeared through a snow tunnel years ago.” The words came out in a whoosh, then she held her breath.
Something strange happened to Ash’s face then. First, he looked confused, as if he couldn’t comprehend what she was saying. Then his eyebrows rose with understanding and surprise, and finally, his face tightened, and he shook his head. “Holly, I don’t think so.”
“How do you know? She disappeared during a snowstorm. You and your dad never heard from her again. That was around the time that Lumi said snow tunneling was getting out of control. There have been so many signs of magic being connected to Emerald Hollow. It’s possible…”
He shook his head again, and she quieted, wanting to give him the space to think or speak.
“My dad said they’d been fighting that day, and they’d been unhappy for a while. It wasn’t like everything was perfectly fine and she just disappeared. It’s not like with Isaiah.”
“That’s true,” Holly said, not wanting to push. “I’ve just been having this weird feeling about it, and I wanted to tell you. We don’t have to discuss it anymore if you don’t want to.”
Ash looked across the dark restaurant toward one of the large windows, his eyes cloudy.
“I’m sorry,” Holly began, “I didn’t mean to?—”
He stopped her by getting up from the counter. Drawing her up and into his arms, he planted a warm, sweet kiss on her forehead. “I’m glad you shared what was bothering you.”
Holly leaned back to study his face, still worried that she’d upset him.
“I’ve got to get back to bed, but we can talk more tomorrow, okay?”
Holly nodded and gave him a smile, but as he walked away, she experienced a crushing sense of failure she hadn’t encountered since the time she’d almost ruined Christmas for the entire world.
Chapter Sixty-Three
ASH
Holly’s words in the kitchen followed Ash all the next day, and he worked at an even quicker pace than normal, diving into every project with the intensity of a blizzard.
She disappeared during a snowstorm.He grabbed a heavy box and heaved it onto a shelf in the pantry.
You and your dad never heard from her again.He expertly sliced open another box and began to unpack the cans of tomatoes.
That was around the time Lumi said snow tunneling was getting out of control.He refocused intently on the inventory sheet he was filling out then closed his eyes as he processed her words again.
You and your dad never heard from her again.
Is that true?He’d always thought that was the case, but his dad had finally told him the previous year that he thought he’d received a postcard from her. He’d said it had turned out to be the wrong address.But what if…
