Axel was quiet for a moment, then took what she handed him.

Blossom immediately added, "Hey, just so you know, I''ve had that with me since I was a kid. It means a lot to me! Don''t you dare lose it! You better give it back when you''re done, got it?"

Axel didn''t respond. He just mmed the car door shut, started the engine, and drove off.

Cold. Ruthless.

It wasn''t until the car was far down the road that he finally nced in the rearview mirror. Blossom was still standing there, crying her eyes out like a little kid.

He frowned, tore his gaze away, and looked down at the old silver locket in his palm before tucking it into his pocket.

As he was driving away from the ski lodge, he happened to spot those girls who''d been picking on Blossom earlier.

They''d already ditched their ski gear and were just about to leave. Each wore some wild thrift-store jacket, their hair dyed every color of the rainbow,ughing and joking like they didn''t have a care in the world. Couldn''t have been more than twenty, Axel guessed-kids who''d never had a real taste of how hard life could hit.

A few scruffy boys were hanging around with them, swaggering and loud.

Axel''s eyes narrowed. He watched as they piled into their SUV and drove off.

A few minutester, Axel caught up to them and forced their car over on the side of the road.

The guys jumped out, swinging metal pipes and shouting, "What''s your problem, man? Looking for trouble or just blind?"

Axel stepped out, stone-faced and silent. He didn''t bother with words. He just showed them what a real lesson looked like.

When he was done, the boys were left groaning in the dirt, faces bruised and bloody, sobbing like toddlers.

Axel picked up one of the discarded pipes and tossed it to the girls. "If I did it, you''d be dead. You do it yourselves-break your own right leg. That''s enough."

He said it with that annoyingly handsome face and a voice so smooth you almost didn''t notice how terrifying the words were.

And then, just to be clear, he added, "The right leg."

He remembered Blossom had twisted her right ankle.

Back at the ski lodge, Blossom was sitting in the snow, bawling her heart out, her face a mess of tears and snot.

Elysia, who had no idea where Axel had gone, tried tofort her. "Hey, Axel''s tough. He''ll be fine, trust me. Don''t work yourself up."

Blossom sobbed even harder, "If hees back hurt, I''ll take care of him. If he dies out there, I''ll go with him. I swear, I can''t—”

Elysia frowned and shot a look at Tarquin. "Where did Axel go, anyway?"

Tarquin could only answer, "He''lle back alive. He promised."

Axel didn''t talk much, but when he gave his word, it meant something. If he said he''de back, he would.

That was why Tarquin had made him promise before he left.

Elysia could read the worry on Tarquin''s face, and she knew better than to ask more She hugged Blossom tighter. "Did you hear

Tarquin? Axel''sing back. Don''t think the worst."  s

But Blossom seemed gripped by some awful premonition. She just sobbed, shaking all over, unable to speak.

Lowell, watching her, couldn''t hold it together anymore and started crying too, fat tears rolling down his cheeks.

He couldn''t take the gloomy mood, so he wiped his face and said, "I''m gonna check on Mr. Hawkins and the kids. It''s getting dark. We should pack up and head home."

The ski lodge had two slopes-one for adults, one for kids. Elysia had made sure the little ones stayed in the kids'' area yton and Pam were over there keeping an eye on them. , s

After Lowell left, Tarquin''s brow stayed furrowed as he made call after call six in a row. He checked in with folks both local and backin Mariana Land, making

arrangements to keep Axel safe

once he arrived.  s

He''d just finished when his phone rang. It was Benjamin.

"Tarquin, you''d better tell Elysia to brace herself. I think she''s gonna have to make

a trip to the hospital tonight."