They reached the riverbank below the bluff after hard hours of travel. The view from there was unchanged, of-fering no hint of the tsunami debris mounds that Rick had spied from above. Instead, the bleak, burnt forest spread out as before. The cold land looked empty of life, a place where even the nightstalkers had departed.
With the bluff behind them, there was no visible goal for them to reach. Their pace lagged and, after a while, even Rick was beyond caring. In his exhaustion, it took all his effort to keep moving. He set little goals for him-self. First, they were to reach the next bend in the river. Then, they were to reach a blackened tree trunk a few dozen yards ahead. By the time it started to grow dark, his goals had been reduced to taking the next step.
'We have to stop,' said Rick. 'I can't go on.'
Con wordlessly dropped her pack. Despite her tiny load, she looked every bit as exhausted as Rick felt. Rick realized that his urgency to finish their journey had clouded his judgment. He had pushed himself and Con too hard and still failed to reach their goal. Now, they were at the end of their strength and would spend the night in the open. If his miscalculation was not to be fatal, he would have to think more clearly.
'I'm going to look for driftwood,' said Rick. 'Will you be all right?'
'I'll help you,' replied Con in a tired voice.
They walked along the riverbank looking for wood. It proved just as scarce as at the last camp. Though they moved as quickly as their exhaustion allowed, racing the gathering darkness, it was soon clear they wouldn't find enough wood to burn all night.
'We'll have to dig a snow cave,' said Rick.
'A snow cave? I thought we wanted to be warm.'
'It's better than being out in the open. We'll snuggle close to keep each other warm.'
'From a log cabin to a snow cave,' said Con. 'You sure know how to lower a woman's expectations!
But I like the snuggling part.'
Rick smiled and felt encouraged that Con still had her sense of humor.
As they walked along the bank, Rick spotted a charred trunk of a large fallen tree. On one side, the snow had drifted to the height of the four-foot log. 'There's a likely spot,' he said.
'You'd better get Joe and our stuff, then,' said Con. 'It's really getting dark. If you tell me how to make the cave, I'll dig it.'
'It's not hard,' said Rick. 'Dig a small entrance tunnel at the base of the drift and enlarge the interior cavity to fit the two of us. Just don't collapse the roof while you're digging it.'
'The snow feels pretty firm,' said Con. 'I don't think that'll be a problem.' Rick dumped the wood near the drift and hurried off to retrieve Joe. By the time he returned, it was getting difficult to see. Rick started a small fire with some of the driftwood, setting aside the rest for the next morning. While Con warmed her frigid hands, he finished the snow cave. Afterward, they crouched over the liny blaze until it was only embers, then retreated to the cave.
It was so dark by then, as Rick huddled with Con be-neath the snow, he could not see her face inches from his. 'Con,' he whispered, 'I love you. I loved you even back on the island.'
'You're not saying that because you think we're not going to make it?'
'No,' he said. 'I just want you to know how I feel.'
'I already know,' whispered Con. 'This sounds like a cliche, but I think we were destined for each other. I've the strangest feeling—like I've always known you. Rick, we're going to spend the rest of our lives together.'
Rick softly kissed Con and prayed that the rest of their lives would be longer than one night. A FAINT, GRAY light filtered through the snow. Rick woke, stiff and frigid. The first thing he did was to see if Con was breathing. 'Con, wake up. It's our last day.' Con opened her eyes.
'How do you feel?' he asked.
'Cold,' Con replied groggily.
'I'm going to get the fire started,' said Rick as he pushed his way through the outer wall of the snow cave. The morning air was colder than the inside of the cave, but no snow fell from the dark sky. He brushed the night's snow off the driftwood and grabbed some down and tinder from Con's pack. By the time Con stretched and hobbled over to Rick, flames were spreading from the tinder.
