The avalanche had disrupted and damaged the communication system in the area, so there was no hope in calling for help.
Thankfully, the avalanche immediately made international news.
The other two employees of Tate Industries who were in the hotel received the news and started calling Layla and her assistant Emma right away.
"Ms. Tate won't pick up."
"Neither will Emma. The signal has to be out over there! What should we do? Should we order a taxi and go there?"
"The roads are probably all blocked!"
"So are we just going to stand here and wait?! If something happens to Ms. Tate, we—"
"Stop being so pessimistic! Ms. Tate didn't go alone. Eric Santos went with her, didn't he?"
"So what if he did? There's a gigantic avalanche. It's not like Eric can control it! You have probably seen too many movies and have mistaken him for some kind of hero!"
"Why are you shouting at me?! I just want Ms. Tate to be safe."
The two argued heatedly.
"We need to call Mr. Foster! Are you doing it or should I?" the manager said to the team leader.
"You are my superior, so you are doing it," the team leader said. "Mr. Foster might not answer my call."
"You are just asking me to call him because you know he's going to be livid! How convenient for you!"
"Stop complaining. If Ms. Tate dies, we will both be blamed." The team leader sighed. "I should have gone with her."
"To die? Haven't you seen the photos of the mountain right now? Even the ticket counter is covered in snow! You can't survive that!" the manager said, feeling chills run down his spine. "The news said that it's been over a decade since an avalanche of this scale occurred. Our boss is just unlucky. Had she gone a day before or after, she wouldn't have run into this!"
"That's just about as unlucky as a person can be!"
"Mr. Foster, something happened!" Elliot immediately tensed at the manager's sob. "Ms. Tate went to the Cambrode mountain with Eric today, and we just received news that there has been an enormous avalanche... I tried calling Ms. Tate and her assistant Emma, but none of them answered their phones... Emma went to the mountain, too, but not with Ms. Tate. Ms. Tate went with Eric... I don't have Eric's number, and I don't know if he can be reached..."
Elliot kept the manager on the line and immediately tried to call Eric.
Avery was standing next to Elliot and though she could not hear every single word, she faintly heard the mention of an avalanche and immediately felt her blood run cold as she watched her husband dial Eric's number.
"Sorry, the number you are calling is unavailable. Please try again later."
"Eric went to see Layla because she asked him to go. Are they in that avalanche?" Avery asked hastily.
Elliot nodded and returned to the phone call with the manager.
"Mr. Foster, we failed to protect Ms. Tate... We are calling a taxi to go there... the roads are all blocked, but we will get as far as we can... If we manage to reach Ms. Tate, I will let you know right away, but it's best if you come here immediately! None of us know what to do at this point!"
This time, Avery heard everything.
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