Chill Factor Read Online Free

he'd been thinking to have charged out of the
woods like that, straight into the middle of the road. What was he
doing up here on foot, during a winter storm, in the first place?
    The trunk lid release on the dashboard didn't work, possibly
because
of damage to the electrical system. Or possibly because the lid was
frozen shut. She removed the key from the ignition and took it with her
to the rear of the car. As she'd feared, the lock was glazed over .
    She groped her way to the shoulder of the road and picked up
the
largest rock she could handle, then used it to chip away the ice. In
emergency situations like this, people were supposed to experience an
adrenaline rush that imbued them with superhuman strength. She felt no
such thing. She was panting and exhausted by the time she'd knocked
away enough ice to raise the trunk lid.
    Shoving the packing boxes aside , she found the
stadium blanket zipped into its plastic carrying case. She and Dutch
had taken it to football games. It was for warding off an autumn chill,
not surviving a blizzard, but she supposed it was better than nothing.
    She returned to the prone figure. He lay as still as death.
Her
voice rose in panic. "Mr. Tierney?"
    He opened his eyes. "I'm still alive."
    "I had a hard time getting the trunk open. Sorry it took so
long."
She spread the blanket over him . "This
won't be of
much help, I'm afraid. I'll try—"
    "Save the apologies. Do you have a cell phone?"
    She remembered from the day they'd met that he was a
take-charge
kind of man. Fine. This wasn't the time to play the feminist card. She
fished her cell phone from her coat pocket. It was on, the panel was
lighted. She turned it toward him so he could read the message. "No
service."
    "I was afraid of that." He tried to turn his head, winced and
gasped, then clenched his jaw to keep his teeth from chattering. After
a moment, he asked, "Can your car be driven?"
    She shook her head. What she knew about cars was limited, but
when
the hood looked like a crumpled soda can, it was reasonable to assume
that the car was disabled.
    "Well, we can't stay here." He made an effort to get up, but
she
pressed her hand against his shoulder.
    "You could have a broken back, a spinal injury. I don't think
you
should move."
    "It's a risk, yeah. But it's either that
or freeze to
death. I'll take the gamble. Help me up."
    He extended his right hand, and she clasped it tightly as he
struggled to sit up. But he couldn't stay up. Bending forward from the
waist, he fell on her heavily. Lilly caught him against her shoulder
and held him there while she repositioned the stadium blanket around
his shoulders.
    Then she eased him back until he was in a sitting position.
His head
remained bent low over his chest. Fresh blood trickled from beneath the
tight watch cap, eddied around the front of his earlobe, and dribbled
down his jaw.
    "Tierney?" She lightly smacked his cheek. "Tierney!"
    He raised his head, but his eyes remained closed. "Fainted, I
think.
Give me a minute. Dizzy as hell."
    He breathed deeply, in through his nose, out through his
mouth.
After a time, he opened his eyes and nodded. "Better. Think that
together we can get me on my feet?"
    "Take all the time you need."
    "Time is what we don't have. Get behind me and put your hands
under
my arms." She released him cautiously and, when she was certain that he
could stay upright, moved behind him. "A backpack."
    "Yeah. So?"
    "The awkward way you were lying, I thought your back was
broken."
    "I landed on the backpack. Probably saved me from a serious
skull
fracture."
    She eased the straps of the pack off his shoulders so she
could lend
him better support. "Ready when you are."
    "I think I can stand up," he said. "You're there to break my
fall
just in case I start falling backward. Okay?"
    "Okay."
    He placed his hands on either side of his hips and levered
himself
up. Lilly did more than spot him should he fall. She made as great an
effort as he, lifting him until he was standing