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He did too, so after reassuring her again, he hung up and called Snowcap Ridge Police. His buddies weren’t there, but the on-duty sergeant knew Lorelei, so she agreed to send the info to the squads on patrol. By the time he hung up, the snow was coming down harder, practically obliterating the light from his headlights. His wipers cleared the snow from his windshield, but he could barely see five feet ahead. There was no way he could see her in this mess.

“Dammit, Joy. Please, please return to the mall.” He repeated the prayer, hoping she’d decided the weather was too bad and turned around. Maybe she realized she didn’t have her phone. Since she could've gone in multiple directions when she left the mall, it was nothing more than a prayer that he’d pass her on the way.

What the hell was Sabrina up to? She had no reason to be in Snowcap Ridge or to stick her nose where it didn’t belong. No one said a word about him replacing Joy with Sabrina over the past few months. Sabrina didn’t even have a management degree, so what did she think she was doing?

“Hey Siri, call August,” he said, trying to keep his eyes peeled for Joy’s SUV but losing the battle to the snow.

“Hey, man, what’s up?” August asked when he answered.

“Sabrina Grigsby.” Kian spat out the two words.

August groaned. “She’s been a pain in my ass since you left. What did she do this time?”

When Kian finished filling him in, August cussed a blue streak. “When she came to me yesterday asking for a couple of extra days off, I gladly granted them. She said she was going home to see her parents and needed to get ahead of the storm. Since we’re pretty much wound down at the office until the new year, I sent her on her way. Marci is going to end your life, man. She doesn’t take kindly to anyone hurting Joy.”

“I didn’t do anything!” Kian exclaimed, shaking his head as the SUV fishtailed on the snowy road. He eased off the gas and regained control. “There’s no reason for Sabrina to be here except to make trouble for me. Do you think someone let on that I’m dating Joy?”

“It didn’t come from me, but with all the media coverage of the mall events, I could see where Sabrina might dig into what you’re up to in Snowcap Ridge.”

“She’s had it out for me since we broke up. I never imagined that when we started dating she’d become such a pain in my backside.”

“Probably the reason not to date someone in the workplace,” August muttered, but that sentiment wasn’t new to Kian. August had been bellyaching about Kian dating Sabrina since it started. In Kian’s defense, she worked at a local outlet mall then. It wasn’t Kian’s fault she’d been transferred to corporate accounting.

“She’s good at her job, but she likes to stir up drama. Case in point today,” Kian ground out.

“To what end? She had to know you weren’t going to play along with this little game, right?”

“If I had to guess, I’d say it’s revenge. She can blow up her world if she wants, but I refuse to let her take me down with her. Where are you?” Kian asked his friend.

“Almost to Wintercrest Estate. Should I turn around?”

“No, get to the estate and stay there. These roads are terrible. I’ll keep you posted. If Joy shows up, don’t let her leave and call me right away.”

“You got it, boss. Be careful,” August said.

“You too,” he said, then hung up.

The mall materialized ahead of him, which meant he hadn’t found her along the way. Where could she have gone in a snowstorm? Pulling into the parking lot, he texted Marci to see if Joy had returned. Her immediate response was no. Slowly, he drove around behind the mall, where Joy parked near her apartment door. Her spot was empty, with enough snow to tell him she hadn’t been back in the last half hour.

The snow! He could follow her tracks out of the parking lot to see which way she turned. Carefully, he turned the SUV and drove alongside her tracks, opening the door to make sure they were hers. They went to the left, which was weird. She drove away from Snowcap Ridge into the countryside? That was an odd choice and would make it even more difficult to navigate. Those county roads were the last ones plowed, which meant he’d need his All-Wheel Drive to get through them. But where would she be going?

He closed his door and tried to think where she could have gone, but nothing came to mind. There weren’t any hotels or even access to the interstate in that direction. Then it hit him. The only thing down that road that would interest Joy was the cemetery. The one where his mother was buried.

Kian grabbed his phone and dialed Marci. When she answered, he didn’t even say hello. “Joy’s going to Mom’s grave. I’m headed that way, but the roads are bad, so I’ll have to go slow. I’ll update when I can.”

“I should have thought of that. Be careful! If you can’t make it down there, come back for a plow truck. It may be the only way through this snow.”

“Good idea. It’s slow going, but my All-Wheel Drive is keeping me on the road. Visibility is terrible, though. I’ll call you back in ten.”

Hanging up, he kept his speed at a measly 15 MPH as he searched for the woman who could have been his life if it weren’t for the woman who wanted to destroy it. All he could do was pray that Joy would listen to reason.

“Ha, fat chance of that happening, given the giant secret you’re keeping from her.”

Kian swore to himself that if he found Joy in one piece, he’d tell her about the mall right then and there. No more secrets.

“I understand now, Mom. You wanted me to learn from Joy this Christmas and to see the season through her eyes. You’ve both taught me so much. I swear, if you keep her safe, I’ll take over from here on out.”

Distracted by thoughts of his mother and the mall, he almost didn’t notice the faint red glow to his right. Gently, he applied the brake, slowing the SUV until he could back up a few feet. He rolled down the passenger window and peered through the snow. What he saw made his blood run cold. The grill of Joy’s SUV was buried, her taillights the only thing visible in the darkness.