Alex Rider: Deception

Sarah- Chapter 11

The first thing Sarah decided upon arriving in Colorado was that she didn't like the cold. It was biting, and somehow managed to weasel into the smallest crevices of her many layers, sending shivers down her spine no matter what she did. It was a relief when Jack finally checked them into their motel, and as unsanitary as the place looked, Sarah was just glad for the warmth. The small room they had rented was comprised of two double beds, a window looking out on a snow covered forest, and a mustard yellow three-piece bathroom.

Sarah was still uncertain as to what she was going to do here, but she knew she had to do something. For now, though, she would take a long-needed shower and go to sleep. She'd be useless if she was cranky and sleep deprived. Sarah gathered her toiletries and a pair of pajamas, then sat absently on the bed watching Jack methodically plug in all his computers and electronics. He's so good to me, she thought, and I haven't even known him for six months. She sighed, shook herself and jumped into the shower, letting the hot water burn pleasantly on her still thawing skin.

Exactly sixteen minutes later she was climbing into one of the double beds, warm and content at last. Of course, she wasn't exactly calm, but she was more content than she had been before, and was no longer pulling her hair out over the mess she was in. And she still felt guilty leaving the portal with only enchantments to protect it from prying eyes.

It's perfectly safe, she reminded herself for the umpteenth time. She sighed and turned over, determined to get a good nights sleep, something she needed desperately if she was going to tackle the unknown tomorrow.

.........

At 7:05 sharp the next morning Sarah was ready to go and still trying to drag Jack out of bed.

"Come on! We need to get going! It's already past seven!"

Jack grunted unintelligibly and swatted her hand away. "All right, all right, I'm up!" he mumbled, and promptly turned over. Sarah growled her frustration and marched to Jack's computer to double check the location of the peak they needed to go to.

Castle Peak was overshadowed by it's much larger brethren, and therefore usually overlooked. It was nestled closely between two famous peaks, practically lost between them, and Google earth captured only its shadow on the mountain next to it. Castle peak was part of Montaña Ski and Resort, so they would have to get tickets to access it. Once they were there, it would be a matter of surviving the biting cold.

There was only one trail that cut through Castle peak, but it didn't appear to be in use any longer. Sarah had found it on a outdated map of the Montaña trails from the '90s. It would be perfect, she realized. She and Jack could take the ski lift up to one of the blue trails, then quietly slip down the one to Castle.

The only problem left was what to do when they arrived at their destination. Assuming they were able to find it of course. Sarah hadn't seen or heard from the man in her warehouse since that day, but his words refused to stop ringing through her mind. She would be fine for a few days out in the wilderness. It wouldn't be pleasant, but she would survive.

It was Jack she was worried about. He was tough, but he was only human, and besides, he wasn't used to that kind of living. Sarah felt a brief stab of guilt for dragging Jack into all this, but tried to focus on something else. Like getting Jack out of bed. She closed the laptop and stomped over to his bed. He was sound asleep. She moved to shake him, but stopped as a sudden idea occurred to her. A mischievous smile crept over her face and she turned to grab what she needed. A bucket, some string, and water.

Seeing as they were in a dingy motel room, there weren't any buckets in sight, so she settled for a plastic cup from the bathroom. Using a safety pin from beneath the sink, Sarah poked a hole into the lip of the cup and threaded the string through it, tying off the end sonit wouldn't slip through. She ran the faucet for a minute to make sure the water was really cold, then balanced it on the headboard above Jack's head.