Mountain Ice (David Dean Mysteries)

Dean called to her and she turned, startled. "What are you doing up here?" he asked. "You look half frozen to death."

"I came for Cynthia. Her mother's sick. She had a heart attack. Someone called." She turned, peering again down the river, as if the message she'd delivered was as perfunctory as a call to supper.

"Did you find her?" Dean asked.

"Yeah. She's run down to Bird Song." Dean turned to leave, but Janet called after him. "You haven't heard?"

"Heard what?" he asked, anxious to get going.

"Mister Shipton's dead. He fell in the river." She waved her hand down the trail where she was looking at a large gathering.

Dean took off at a run, past more gawkers staring over the edge. As he came out of the trees and crossed the bridge, he passed the sheriff 's car and emergency vehicles, their bubble gum lights still turning red or blue in the thickening snow. He glanced back, far below, down at the water where a group was huddled, presumably around the victim. But Dean's first priority was his wife Cynthia and he continued to jog, forced to concentrate on his footing if he were to remain upright in the gathering snow. Any thoughts of Shipton could wait until later.

When Dean rushed into Bird Song, Cynthia was standing in the hall, the phone at her ear. While she wasn't crying, she was biting her lip against doing so, and kept blinking her reddened eyes. He put his arm around her as she continued to talk. Dean could tell from the conversation she was speaking to her son Randy. As soon as she hung up, she held Dean close.

"Janet told you?" He nodded. "It happened last night," she murmured. "A neighbor friend tried to call me but they didn't know my married name. Finally someone from back in Parkside told them."

"How is she?" Dean asked.

"I don't know. Not good. No one seems to know, not really. She's in the hospital, still unconscious." She began to cry. "Where were you? When I came back, I...wanted you here."

"I was up at the park, looking for you," he answered, holding her closer.

"Shipton, he's-?" she said.

Dean cut her off. "I heard. But that can wait. We have to get you up to Indiana." He reached for the phone book. "You go pack some things. I'll make a plane reservation."

"Can we afford-?"

"Cynthia, it's your mother. She needs someone and you're the only person she has. We're not paupers, at least not completely."

Effie Quincy rushed in the door while Dean was drumming his fingers, listening to waltz music on hold. She was all a-babble over Shipton's fall and dismayed that she couldn't find her sister. Dean told her about Cynthia's mother. She offered her sympathies but seemed more concerned with finding sister Claire and hurried outside to see if any of the other now returning guests had seen her. The Deans then retired to their quarters to make airline arrangements in private. A half hour later, with Dean never having removed the phone from his ear, they were ready to leave for the airport. By that time, most of the ice climbers were back at Bird Song. Not only did the intensifying snow make climbing even more dangerous than usual, but Shipton's accident had cloaked a pall over everyone's activities.