CHAPTER 4

"... when did you learn how to ice skate, Monica?"

Holding the Irish angel's hand and walking excitedly across the resort's area, Sarah tilted her head and eyed her new friend with the curiosity typical of a seven-year-old, whereas Bailey followed the two silently, like loyal guardian.

Despite the previous argument with Andrew and the immense sadness it had caused her, Monica managed a small smile, grateful that at least she was given that specific assignment. Like her beloved angel of death, she too loved children and taking care of them would always bring her much joy.

"Well... It was a while ago..."

"Did you find it difficult?"

"Not really... I... kind of had some help..."

"Did you ever ice skated with Andrew?"

The smile on her face turned into a bittersweet one, as a joyful memory came to her mind: some years before, she and Andrew had shared some pleasant moments ice skating together, and even though at that time they were not aware of the loving feelings lying in their hearts, she remembered how happy she was then.

But all the moments spent by Andrew's side were happy ones. At least most of them were.

"Yes..." she replied, trying hard to ignore the presence of tears forming in her doe-like eyes. "Yes, I did..."

"I never told my mom but I'm kinda afraid of skiing..." she confessed, shyly.

"Afraid?"

"Yes... of falling down and getting hurt badly... I once fell from the bike and got my arm broken... it hurt a lot..."

"Well, if you want I can teach you to ice skate... If you really want to try it, the most important is that you have someone older near you, so that you don't get hurt."

"Okay... maybe some day..." she replied, and then continued the usual avalanche of questions, "Why didn't I see Andrew with you today? You're missing him, aren't you?"

"Andrew is working too, sweetie..."

Sarah shrugged her tiny shoulders, visibly wishing to see the couple who saved her together again. "Bet he's missing you too..."

Monica was going to say something else but the little girl's attention got caught up on something else, and she tugged the angel's hand excitedly, "Monica, look! Can we have some hot chocolate, please?"

She was pointing to a café not far from where they were, and her excitement pulled Monica's sadness away at least for some moments, "You're definitely a persuasive wee one!"

X

Andrew turned the phone off and sighed with some worry. Contrary to what he'd heard first, it was two skiers, and not just one, who had climbed an area that wasn't frequently visited and hadn't returned yet. The blond angel lifted a silent prayer, asking for their safety, and at the same time thanking that at least Monica would be around the resort area.

"What are these guys thinking? That they cannot die just because they've been practicing the sport for a while?" One of his colleagues spoke, with slight irritation.

"Guess it's the will to defy God..." the other one replied.

Andrew nodded his head in agreement, "Yes... and little do they know He's the one protecting them..."

Promising he would talk to her at the first opportunity he had, and fix things between him and Monica, Andrew joined the other two ski patrollers in a search for the lost skiers.

X

"... he needs a woolen hat, Monica! Otherwise he'll get cold!" Sarah spoke, as she and Monica built up a snowman. As Bailey couldn't stay inside the café, Monica ordered a double chocolate with milk for the little girl and a double mocha for herself, and they were drinking while strolling around the ski area.

Soon, Sarah had the idea of playing in the soft white snow, and somewhat foreseeing this, Monica had bought the snowman's eyes, nose and mouth in the same coffee shop. The two spent some good time building it up and engaged in a nice conversation, and all that movement, combined with the hot sunrays that shone at that time of the day, made them feel tired.

"I guess he won't be that cold, Sarah! You see, I'm starting to feel hot already!"

"Me too! Oh, I got an idea: we can leave him here and later on, mommy and daddy can come here to see him and get a picture!"

"I think they'll love to, Sarah!" the Irish angel replied, and then, with a pensive and amused expression on her face, she eyed the snowman from head to toe, "Hum... I guess we've finished! Now we need to find a name for him! what do you think?"

Also with a rather thoughtful look, the girl considered that question for some moments. Then, she finally smiled. "Peter Pepper!"

Giggling, the angel reached for her tiny hand and nodded, "Peter Pepper sounds perfect!"

At that very moment, a noise coming from the nearby forest called their attention, and made Bailey stand up and bark at the ever green pine trees.

"Did you hear that, Monica?"

"Yes... It... sounded like another bark..." she said, trying to make out any other animal in between the bushes and trees. Moments later, the noise could be heard once again, and now they were certain that it was a little dog.

"It's a little puppy, Monica! Maybe he got lost from his mom! Can we go and see it?" the little girl suggested, all excited about the totally unexpected adventure.

Feeling sorry for the little creature herself, Monica nodded in agreement, "Yes, come with me, Sarah."

Followed by Bailey, the two entered the forest and started whistling and calling for the lost animal, and it didn't take them too long to find it - the little Saint Bernard puppy walked clumsy towards them as soon as it saw the group.

"Hey, look at you, wee one!" Monica spoke, as she and Sarah stroked his soft fur.

"He's so cute, Monica!" the girl smiled as the animal greeted them with lots of wet kisses. "Where did he come from? Do you think he got lost from his parents?"

She examined the Saint Bernard baby and saw there was a leach around his neck with a pendant and a number carved on it. "It's from one of the resorts... The one where Andrew is also staying..." Her eyes grew sadder at the memory of her beloved one.

"Really?"

"Yes, he told me one of the Saint Bernards of the rescuers had babies and this one might have escaped..." She turned the pendant around, "... and you won't believe it but this wee boy's name is actually Pepper!"

Giggling, Sarah tapped her forehead, "He heard me calling the snowman and thought I was talking to him!"

"Probably!"

"Can we take it back then? I mean, we saved his life, didn't we?"

The girl's eyes sparkled with excitement, and Monica couldn't help smiling again, "Oh, yes. I guess you've just taken part of your first rescue mission, Sarah!"

They stood up and Monica looked around, and up to the small rocky steep where the white of the snow and the green of the pinecones mixed forming one beautiful scenario. There was no one there except them. "C'mon, then. Let's go back..."

The sun was warm, and there was no wind in the gully. But it was then that a movement above her caught the angel's eyes. She looked up, and then whispered, suddenly alarmed. "Oh, Father... Sarah... we have to get out of here!"

She pulled the little girl to her feet and practically dragged her along the way. "What is it, Monica?"

Bailey's barks and the noise that started to increase only made them twice nervous. Sarah realized that some rocks came rolling down the hill and, finally, that the patch of snow not far above them was moving! Like a stream it poured over the rock step and against the trees on its way, and then a whole section of snow began to move.

Quickly, Monica dragged Sarah with her and both ran through the woods, in a desperate search for a shelter to protect them from the avalanche that was roaring down the hill. As they ran, rocks and logs, some of them big enough to kill a person, also came down, announcing the huge mass of snow that was coming closer every second, and some of them hit Monica in full force. The angel fell on the ground and let go of Sarah's hand for a second.

"Go on, Sarah, keep on running!"

"Monica!"

The little girl stopped for a moment, reluctant in keeping on running and leaving her friend behind. Bailey and the little Saint Bernard they had just found were barking nervously, foreseeing the tragedy that was about to happen.

"Go, Sarah! I'll be right behind you!"

Having no other option, the girl obeyed to Monica's orders and kept on running. It all seemed an eternity for her, yet, it lasted for only a few seconds. With some effort, the angel managed to stand on her feet again and continued to run, raising an arm to protect herself from being hit by some of the stones and the trash that came down the hill. When the snow appeared, she pulled the little girl close to her and both kneeled behind a huge rock, half hidden in between the trees. Monica held Sarah tightly against her, and they closed their eyes as the avalanche passed, leaving a trail of death and destruction behind.

The minutes they stayed there seemed endless hours. They thought about their beloved ones and the feeling of never seeing them again made their hearts ache with anguish and pain. If on one side, Monica was grateful to be there and save that little girl's life, on the other, she feared for her own existence, and lifted a silent prayer, asking for the courage to fulfil that assignment, and secretly for a chance to be back in Andrew's arms once again.

When the chaos and the dust subsided, they opened their eyes again and looked around: they were both half buried in the snow, which came up to their waist. The dogs had disappeared too, and a sensation of sheer terror crept over them as they realized they were lost.

"Monica?" Sarah's crying voice finally broke the heavy silence, and the angel looked down at her. The expression on the girl's face was one of panic, and it broke her heart to realize she couldn't do much for her at that very moment, as Monica herself was fighting against her own fear.

"It's over now, Sarah... it's over..." she spoke, with trembling voice, caressing the girl's face.

"You're hurt..." Sarah replied, the nasty cut on Monica's forehead scaring her even more. The Irish angel raised a hand up to touch her forehead and saw fresh blood on her fingertips. A stone had hit her when she fell, and caused the injury. Even though she herself was scared, Monica tried to show calm in order not to alarm the little girl more than she already was.

"It's just a cut... I'll take care of it later... Are you alright yourself? Did you get hurt?" she immediately worried.

"I... I guess I didn't..." Sarah sniffled as her tears fell down, "Monica, I'm scared... Bailey and Pepper disappeared! I want them here! I want mommy and daddy with me!"

"Shh... Calm down, sweetie... calm down..." she held the little girl gently, and caressed her blond hair, praying for guidance.

"What are we going to do?"

"We have to find the way back to the resort... Come with me, let's shout out for Bailey..."

As she pulled the snow away and stood on her feet, Monica felt a sharp pain in her ankle and bit her lip not to moan.

"What is it?"

"I... I guess I have a sprained ankle, Sarah, that's all..." taking a deep breath, the injured angel gave the first steps over the snow, which was fluffy and difficult to walk on. Both she and Sarah started to call out for the two missing dogs, and terrifying thought crossed Monica's mind: what if the avalanche had caught them? The dogs, especially Bailey, could guide them back to the resort, and without them, it would be much more difficult to do so. If the night fell and they didn't find the way back, what would become of them?

X

Andrew and his colleagues were looking for the lost skiers on another hill, not far from where the resort and the ski station were. And he saw, at the distance, that the snow was giving in and falling down on an area that was a bit far from the resort. Yet, the vision was a troubling one.

"Jeff, Paul!" the blond angel called, frowning with concern as he realized there was an avalanche.

His colleagues followed his gaze, and the fear that something more serious had happened soon stroke their hearts. Paul grabbed the walkie-talkie and started to communicate with the rest of the rescue team. Even though it wasn't an area usually visited by tourists and skiers, Andrew felt like he had been stabbed in the heart all of a sudden. It was an unexplainable mix of anguish, panic and fear, and he immediately thought about Monica. How he wanted to go after her! And now, not only to apologize for what he'd said earlier, but also to certify she was safe.

"Please, Father, let her be alright... I love her so much... it's my heart that she's carrying with her..."