Chapter 23

Caleb snatched the professional mountaineering pack and locator from the bodyguard and broke free from their grasp. Like a madman, he charged headlong into that forbidden zone of life, heedless of the raging blizzard. Snow and wind blurred his vision, the biting cold gnawing at his very bones. He trudged through knee-deep snow, each step a battle, his shouts torn apart by the howling wind. "Winnie! Winona! Where are you? Answer me!" Fear coiled around his heart like an icy serpent. Caleb didn't dare imagine what it would mean to lose her. The thought alone chilled him to the core, colder than the subzero storm itself. Her face replayed endlessly in his mind—the way she smiled, the way she glared at him in anger, the way she turned and left without hesitation. Every expression of hers was carved into his heart. He had no idea how much time had passed. Just as his strength was nearly spent and his consciousness began to blur, the locator suddenly gave off a faint signal beep. His