Page 4 of Abdominal Snowman

But soon she was daydreaming less about being in the cabin and focusing on the road, trying to get to the cabin.

* * *

The snow fell in fat flakes to the ground, obscuring the white lines on either side of the pavement. Sage gripped the steering wheel tighter, the SUV seat dwarfing her small frame.

“What the hell did I get myself into?” She grumbled to herself.

The small town behind her grew smaller and smaller as her car climbed the mountain, lights flicking on in the dim twilight. She glanced behind her and was in awe of the picturesque scene.

The tires gripped on a patch of slushy snow, pulling Sage’s attention back to the road.

“Take a vacation in the mountains, yeah, great idea, Sage,” she grumbled to the steering wheel.

Twisting and winding, the road took her farther and farther away from civilization. The mountain face was almost vertical on her right-hand side, and wild trees sloped down the landscape to her left. She couldn’t admire the pristine nature surrounding her yet, and thoughts of her DSLR camera and winter photos swirled in her mind like the flakes dancing furiously across her windshield.

As she rounded a curve, her headlights splashed a large figure in the middle of the road with bright light. Her heart leapt into her chest as brilliant blue eyes swung to her. Their gazes locked onto each other for a split second before she jerked her wheel to the left, swerving to miss the figure. Sage’s breath caught in her throat as the car swerved out of her control, her brakes doing nothing against the hard packed, icy snow. Her entire body tensed as she braced for impact, eyes wide and watching the beautiful scenery swirl into a terrifying kaleidoscope.

The car veered off the side of the road and she tensed, bracing for impact. The vehicle flew past trees, the branches slapping against her windows with a horrific screech. Her body was thrown against her seatbelt as the car came to a slamming halt in a wedge between a tree and the mountainside. The recoil jostled her in the opposite direction, and her head slammed into the window.

The thunk of her head and the instant pain took her breath away. Her vision went blurry, and she slammed her eyes shut, but it didn’t stop the black spots from dotting even the backs of her eyelids.

She went limp in the seat, telling herself not to pass out. Trying to breathe evenly, Sage waited until the black spots faded and the pain in her head dulled to a throb.

When she finally collected herself, her hands were gripping the wheel so tightly her knuckles were white. The car was still running, but the purr of the engine sounded nothing like it had ten minutes prior. One by one, she became aware of her fingers and flexed them on the wheel.

“Breathe,” she whispered and gasped for air.

Her heart was racing against her chest and making her feel light-headed. Breathing through it, she focused on flexing her fingers and taking account of her own body. All ten toes were attached. She lifted a hand to her head and found no blood, but she felt the knot on her temple forming already.

“Ow,” she hissed as she brushed her fingers over it. “Okay, I’m okay. Everything’s fine.”

Everything was not fine. The passenger side of her rental was fucked. Glass was everywhere, letting the icy air into the car. And she probably had a damned concussion.

“Oh my god,” she breathed, suddenly remembering what had caused her to crash.

Throwing the door open, she grabbed her gloves and hat from the passenger seat and exited. Sage sank into the snow to her ankles, and she felt the chill even through her layers. Chasing a chill away with a shiver, she stomped through the snow, grabbing at branches to get up the incline of the ditch.

Her breath puffed out in foggy clouds of air, obscuring her vision for a split second when she got to the top. Legs shaky—from adrenaline or the incline, she didn’t know—Sage stared at the white winter wonderland turned nightmare.

It still looked beautiful.

The only thing marring it were her tire tracks that clearly led off the road, though they were fading fast at the speed of the snowfall. Her heart pounded as she watched the tracks spin and spin and saw how close she’d come to the other side of the road. The cliffside.

I could have died.

I need to call... someone.

Sage felt around in her pockets for her phone, gloved hands tapping the screen when she pulled it out.

No service. Fucking perfect.

The realization that she was basically stranded up here alone in the middle of a snowstorm made it harder to breathe, and she focused on filling her lungs as she searched the rest of the area. Something farther down the road, where her tire tracks first went wild, caught her gaze.

The snow crunched loud under her feet, announcing her presence to the entire forest, not that anyone was listening.

Sucking in a breath, Sage tried to calm herself again. Her heart rate was slowing, but wind was rattling the trees around her, and already the sun was making its descent into the sky.

She had to find help before the sun went down.