Free The Christmas Phoenix by Patricia Kiyono Page B

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    As he approached the last curve at a breakneck speed, the road came in sight. All he could do was pray no one was coming. Maybe he could spin the van around at the wide bottom of the drive, he thought. And then, miraculously, he heard the crunch of snow under the tires. The drive leveled off, and the van slowed to a manageable speed. Jake stepped hard on the brakes, and the vehicle came to a stop at the road's edge.
    Just in time for a bus full of school children to pass by.
    He closed his eyes and rested his head on the steering wheel. If he hadn’t been able to stop here, he could have slid into the bus, or zoomed on to the street right in front of it.
    He waited for his racing heart to stop pounding then looked back to assure himself the sculpture was still there. The eagle seemed to glare at him with a reprimand. Great. Even the ice was angry with him. He turned his attention back to the task of driving and looked both ways before pulling on to the road. He'd memorized the directions to the Pine Ridge Hotel. Barring any more driving problems, he'd get there well before the banquet.
    Compared to the slide down the driveway, the rest of the trip was uneventful. Everyone else drove slowly, and a fleet of snowplows had cleared the way for commuters and school buses.
    How did people live in this mess for months every year? Jake wondered if he'd made a mistake moving north.
    The road conditions improved as he got closer to town. Heavier traffic had melted the snow into dirty slush. Jake concentrated on the street signs, looking for the Pine Ridge Hotel. It was supposedly the largest in northern Michigan, and if he could get the clientele here interested in his work, he'd be able to drum up enough business to build a proper studio so he could work here year round. The garage wasn't going to work during the hot, humid summers.
    He drove slowly, probably slower than he needed to, but the experience on his driveway still made his heart race. Gripping the steering wheel, he edged his way through the busy streets, absently noting the decorations adorning the street lamps and storefronts. The holidays would soon be here, and this was the perfect time to attract new customers. With that in mind, he'd brought his business cards. His sister Donna had designed a great new one, with his new cell phone number.
    The huge, glass-covered building had to be the hotel. It was the only convention-sized building on the block. He pulled into the circular drive, where a shivering doorman directed him around to the service drive. Jake pulled around and found the correct entrance, and parked. He took out a sturdy collapsible cart and carefully loaded his sculpture onto it.
    Now he had to find the "Wolverine Room" and get this eagle to the Audubon Society Banquet before it started to melt. He entered the building and followed the signs to the banquet rooms.
    His cart suddenly jerked to the right and he reached out a hand to keep his sculpture from falling off.
    "Oh!"
    A red-haired sprite lay in a heap on the left side of his cart. White linen napkins covered the floor all around her. She looked vaguely familiar.
    "Are you okay?"
    The sprite picked herself up, not making eye contact with him. "Yeah, I'm fine. I need to look where I'm going." She started picking up her napkins. “I'll need to re-wash these and fold them again.” Looking at his cart, she perked up. "Wow, this is fabulous! I hope I didn't break it."
    Oh, drat. He'd been so worried about the sprite he'd nearly forgotten. A quick inspection revealed a feather broken off from one of the eagle's wings, but it was barely noticeable. "No harm done. I'd help you with those napkins, but I need to get this delivered. Which room is the Wolverine Room?"
    "Huh? Oh, it's the next room down the hall on your right. The manager, Max, should be in there. He can help you."
    "Thanks."
    Wheeling the cart toward the banquet room, Jake realized the sprite had the same husky voice as the