Disorientated and alone Elena walked into the cold wilderness, not caring about the sharp trees ripping against her exposed skin; or her cold and numb feet crushing against the ice. Her only concern was getting away from here, as quickly as possible.

The sunlight was slowly disappearing over the horizon, soon it would be dark. Her hands instinctively covered her face from the endless branches of twigs. When she thought she could walk no more, she stopped briefly against a tree gasping for air; the coolness leaving a burning trail down her throat. Bending downwards with her head between her knees, she took deep breaths in and out. Elena could only just feel the tips of her fingers; the rest of her body was going numb. The realization that her life was in danger, hit her–she needed to continue. Determined that she was getting out of this alive, Elena got up covering part of her face with her jacket.

Elena thought about her life, the one she had lived thus far. Her friends and family would be devastated when they realized she was missing. She knew her parents concern, and power to do everything to find her; even her brother Jeremy would jump onboard with the search party. What of Bonnie and Caroline, her friends she went on this adventure with? She knew they would be feeling responsible, that it was her and not them. But that was one of the risks you took when skiing backcountry. As professional ski instructors, they should have known better.

She was getting tired and the coldness was making her sluggish. Frightened at the thought of being struck down with frost bite, and losing consciousness; she started screaming, her voice echoing throughout the vast emptiness.

Damon wielded the axe above his head, the sharp blade slicing through the wood with precision; the chopped pieces spillling onto the ground. He needed to gather enough wood before dusk fell, or he would find wild animals at his door.

His cabin was set off the mountain, where the trees started and the snow stopped. The silence and solitude was just the way he liked it. He'd stoked the fire in the sitting room earlier, warming the cool air. He had lived this way, in the wilderness for the past three years; an escape from the real world and all the bullshit that entailed. He had a job, at one of the ski repair stores; the guy behind the scenes, repairing god knows how many skis and snowboards a day. To him it was just a job, paid the bills and kept the roof over his head. His boss, Alaric Saltzman was the only person he engaged with; he found most people to be shallow and annoying.

Life for him was simple with no distractions; no TV and little phone coverage. If he was desperate, he had found an area where his cell picked up a signal; at the top of the mountain. There was no point yelling for the neighbours, there wasn't any for miles and miles. He'd heard all the rumours the town had made about him; along with the looks people gave him in passing. Damon usually stared right back, the majority of them had the decency to look away. He couldn't care less what others thought and was in no hurry to correct them.

He was tired of the girls throwing themselves into his orbit; coming past the repair shop when he was busy, with some stupid request. Of course he needed to be polite, it wasn't his business. Damon knew what they wanted, to see if they could be the one to tame him; the girls found him attractive, with his short dark hair and piercing blue eyes. He hadn't met a woman he cared enough about, to get past the mundane pleasantries. He'd had several dalliances with different women, mostly tourists he knew he would never see again.

Content with the life he led, why fix what wasn't broken? His brother Stefan, a big shot attorney in New York, was notorious for pestering him to move back east. He shut that shit down, with a resounding no each and every time. Their mother and father, Giuseppe and Lily Salvatore lived in New Jersey; driving Stefan crazy with their drama filled lives. He hadn't seen his parents or sibling for three years.

The sounds of piercing screams broke his quiet solitude. "Help... Help me." They only lasted a few seconds. Damon sprung to his feet grabbing his rifle and torch light.

Three weeks earlier;

Elena stared out the window, bored out of her mind. The seminars she had been attending for the past two days were dragging on and on. How much more do people expect to get drummed into them about safety? She was the first one to volunteer going on this damn course; her supervisor Jenna Miller advised that it would be mandatory for all instructors to attend.

This would be Elena's fifth season in Aspen, on the mountain as a ski instructor. She loved the cold and the snow; granted she had grown up under the Californian sun–Aspen was more to her liking. Every morning she woke to fresh snow flakes falling–littering the cabins, and roads. The slopes on the mountains would be full of soft white powdery snow, perfect for any activity.

She hadn't contemplated that working as a ski instructor was going to be her calling in life; it helped those times when she was at college studying–and a bit of fun too. Now that college days were over, Elena still had time to figure out what she wanted to do. Her parents were a sore point; not happy they deemed her to be wasting away her career opportunities. So what? It was her choice was to spend every winter here; she was an adult who made her own choices.

The Easy Ski Academy was one of Aspen's largest, comprised with over two hundred employees; established in 1985. They had thirty years on some of these newcomers popping up, only to see them crash and burn. Her boss, Mason Lockwood always said, 'No bloody business sense. Idiots to think they could make some quick bucks.'

Elena heard a voice calling her, she glanced in the direction she heard her name. Shit, the lecturer was waiting for her response. Why now? She had no idea what Isobel Flemming had been talking about for the past twenty minutes. "Sorry? Could you repeat that again?" she asked.

The short statured woman glared at her. "Do you think safety is a joke? It doesn't matter how many times you are out there; you could always learn something."

Elena's cheeks reddened at being singled out in class. Forty pairs of eyes were fixated on her. She grabbed the notebook, hastily writing down nothing of importance.

Isobel adressed the rest of the students, "So there we have it guys. I hope you learnt something useful. Today's session is over."

Elena gathered her notes, rushing out of the room without another thought.

Bonnie Bennett and Caroline Forbes were her best friends in Aspen. They had become fast friends, clicking with each other immediately. Every year they looked forward to packing their bags from all over the country. They shared a three bedroom, two bathroom house not far from the centre of town. The company paid for their rent; so amongst the trio, they each took turns paying for groceries, bills, and whatever else popped up. Throughout the years, they had their ups and downs; sharing a house and working together was enough to drive anyone crazy. Their friendships were strong enough to ride out any bumps along the way.

Elena walked into Caroline's room; finding her flinging clothes from the wardrobe, onto a pile on her bed. She laughed. "God Caroline, I thought you were the neat freak."

Caroline leaned backwards, sighing in frustration. "Don't start. I need to find the perfect outfit for tonight."

Elena lifted her brow in surprise. "Tonight?" she asked.

"Yes tonight. Don't you remember? We always go out the night before the new season begins."

Oh right, the Elena, Bonnie and Caroline routine they did every year. To be honest, she had forgotten, or maybe she was getting bored. "Of course I remember. I'll tell Bonnie to hurry along in the shower."

The Raven bar was jammed with night time punters. Mostly employees from Aspen, living it up before the new day started. Bonnie sussed out the bar closest to them, ordering three vodka cruises. "Here we go, to our new season on the slopes. I'm excited to be back here with you guys."

She studied her friend, the pair had stayed in touch constantly during the ski breaks. Bonnie hailed from Atlanta, and she'd even flown over to see her a few times. Elena hugged her. "I missed you too."

Caroline had found a table with stools and was waving madly for them to come over. Elena noticed the cocktail glasses lined up on table. She said, "You know what those are, don't you?"

The blonde shrugged. "We only live once, roll with it." She gulped it down in one go.

Bonnie took hers, sipping in a more ladylike fashion. "I like it."

Elena shook her head; knowing full well she wasn't going to be the one with her head in a bucket later. Those innocent looking drinks were potent, and well known to wipe out your inhibitions.

They watched on as few inebriated people started hitting the dance floor. Elena wasn't one for dancing, she was well known for having two left feet. Caroline yelled over the music, "Time to hit the floor ladies." She reluctantly followed them; Bonnie started swaying with the music, a natural talent; when she was younger, she'd spent time in a dance studio. At one point, she could have really made a career from it, until an injury prevented Bonnie from continuing.

A few songs later, Caroline had started her dance of seduction. Elena and Bonnie, used to her antics–stood back and watched as the guys started gravitating towards her. Caroline was in her element.

A voice broke over the loud music, "Well you look as bored as I am."

Elena turned slightly; noting the tall guy with light brown hair, maybe in his early thirty's. She responded, "Is it that obvious?"

He took a swig of his beer. "Yep, I don't blame you, when that's all on offer." He nodded his head towards the dance floor, where a group of rowdy males were stripping their shirts off.

Elena laughed. "I'm sure someone would find that appealing, not me though."

He held out his hand in greeting, "Alaric Saltzman, I own one of the ski repair shops."

She shook his hand. "It's nice to meet you Alaric. I might see you around."

Busting for the loo, she headed towards the restroom; when a wave of uneasiness struck her, flooding her body with goosebumps. Elena turned back towards Alaric, but he was gone. She couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching her. She observed those she could see; an amorous couple totally oblivous to their surroundings, and a couple of girls at the bar doing vodka shots. Nobody was there she told herself, she was being silly.

By midnight, she'd had enough. She caught hold of Bonnie, and a reluctant Caroline and headed home. Caroline staggered to her room, collapsing onto the bed. Elena said to Bonnie, "Guess who is going to be shitfaced in the morning?"

"As long as she's not puking on the mountain, she should be fine." Bonnie yawned. "I'm buggered. I'm going to bed. Goodnight."

Elena was exhausted too. "I hope you are right," she said. She made a beeline for her bedroom- desperate for some sleep, an early start was on the cards tomorrow.

True to form, Caroline was in a bad way in the morning. After she spent the night throwing up, she claimed she was on deaths door. Bonnie gave her a bottle of water and some tylenol; forgetting her bedside manner, she ordered, "Take these and stop complaining." Caroline did as told, and gradually some colour came back into her pale face.

They walked to work, Elena kept to herself; listening to Caroline and Bonnie discuss last night. "So you Miss C, were pretty drunk. But you had at least three guys enthralled by your sexy moves on the dance floor."

Caroline groaned. "Ok, so why was there no-one in my bed?"

Bonnie shrugged, turning her attention on the brunette. "Elena you are quiet, what about you?"

They arrived at Easy Ski Academy pushing through the wooden doors. Elena flipped her pony tail back. "No. Just spoke with some guy who owns a ski repair place."

One of the admin workers shooed them towards the meeting room. Caroline retorted, "C'mon, how about a welcome to your first day of the season?" They entered the room, taking their seats in the third last row. There were many new faces eager for the season to begin. Yes and five years ago she was one of them. Elena checked the time, bang on 7.00am. The lights dimmed, the projector screen dropped down; with a video of Aspen and its mountains on show.

She looked to her left, smiling at her was Matt Donovan; her ex. She had forgotten he would be back. Elena gave him a wave in acknowledgement, turning her attention back to the front of the room. Never date someone you work with; she should of followed that mantra, now it just made things awkward. It was her idea to break things off-he was developing deeper feelings for her, when she knew straight up he wasn't the one. Matt was well liked at the academy, a snowboard instructor; she was sure there would be a new bevy of beauties hoping to catch his eye.

The meeting finally finished half an hour later. The girls hung around their lockers, lamenting over the classes they had been allocated. Elena had intermediate, the group she enjoyed the most; not the nervous first timers, or the little ones who took off without warning. Elena spun around to catch Bonnie and Caroline ogling over one of the new faces. "What has got you both so worked up?" she asked.

Caroline nudged Elena. "I bet he's new. I'm going to school him into Easy ski."

Bonnie burst out laughing. "Watch out everyone, Caroline Forbes is a woman on a mission."

They all burst into a fit of giggles, heading towards the change rooms. Elena said, "It is so good to be back. I wonder what this season is going to bring?"