Page 26 (1/2)

Chapter One

Soo into what I call the ‘road coma’ where I suddenly become acutely aware that I have no recollection of the past, say, twenty or soNot the road, not stopping at stop signs, not as on the radio… It’s a total blank A quick flash of fear will grip me, and I’ll think what if I ran someone over and don’t even know it? Surely, if I had, I would have experienced a quick bump and thump and snapped out of it

Right?

I blink and clutch the steering wheel, suddenly realizing I a, narrow mountain road that’s covered with snow When I left the house an hour ago, the snoas barely colance at the GPS, which hasn’t said a word in a long ti to whatup here except for trees And snow Lots of snow I s hard and wonder if the GPS has been talking to nored it Michael promised et lost with this tiny digital device, but now I a serious doubts

I grab my cell phone to call him and tell hihing, I throw it back onto the passenger seat where it bounces and lands on the floor I reach down to grab it and inadvertently, turn the wheel and the car starts to slide Being the pinnacle of panic that I aoes into a total spin The snow is co and all I can see is a spinning white blur as I try to get the car under control I’m not even sure what side of the road I’ht direction The car and I are like a feather in the wind, gently blowing this way and that, twirling in the gusts, until we finally co lightly off the steering wheel I force my eyes open and peer around No, it wasn’t a crash Not really It was a rather anti-cli The car just came to a stop—nose first off the side of the road And while I a out of the windshield, I a

I reach for nal, but there is nothing Zero bars I try to reas stations while in -induced stupor, but I can’t rens of civilization, which really enforces the fact that I am most likely nowhere near the posh hotel whereheld this weekend I am lost and stuck Lost and stuck My heart starts to pound faster Lost and stuck Stuck and lost Zero bars

Okay, Evelyn, stay calm Deep breaths

“Hey, you okay?” The pounding of his palm on thescares the heck out of me I ju black coat, his eyes hidden behind dark sunglasses with a cigarette hanging out of histo break into my car

Oh, my God! Psycho kidnapper murderer in the snowstorm

“Hello?” he says again He opens the car door and snow falls into the car and onto ainst the middle console of the car seat I sneak a peek at hi in his eyebrow

What e metal objects into their face?

“Don’t touch un Or a knife But all I have is a pack of orange tic-tac’s, and although I did get one stuck in my throat once, I doubt I could use theht now

“Okay, lady, just calm down Did you hit your head?”

Lady? Who’s he calling lady?

“No, I didn’t hitmy head There is a little sore spot And it feels wet I pull er away and examine it Blood!

“Oh, my God I think I cracked my skull open!”

“No, you didn’t It’s just a little bump”

“It’s bleeding!” I rue around in my purse and pull out a crumpled tissue and blot my head It’s just a tiny bit of blood, but still Sasquatch watches me with an amused smirk, then reaches out his hand and pushes my hair away from my forehead

“You’re okay,” he says “Just a tiny bump”

I cringe away and curl et your head out of my car”

Laughing, he kneels down next to the car and rests his ar out having a chit chat instead of sitting on the side of the road—in a blizzard—in a ditch I’m sure he’s insane

“So What are you doing way out here?” he asks casually

“My car is stuck! Hello?” What is with this idiot?

“Yeah, uh I can see that I ot yourself stuck in this ditch?”

“To the Falls Inn”

“The Falls Inn?” he repeats and lets out another laugh “Baby, you ain’t anywhere near the Falls fucking Inn It’s about fiftyabout fifty ht have landed there Is that what you were trying to do?”

Damn GPS! I should never have relied on that useless device My situation is starting to feel worse by the et to ? Or home for that matter I can’t even call et me

“—and it’s about a fewtothe conversation inside my head

“I’ on the briood

“I said I have a cabin a few o there and wait the storm out My truck is parked on the road I pulled over when I saw you spin out and crash You almost hit me, ya know”

Oh, hell no! The old ‘cabin in the woods’ story I wonder how many psychos have used that line It seems to be the basis of many a horror movie or creepy novel

I shake my head “I don’t think so, but thank you for the offer” Yes, be polite andmy body bloody and beaten in the snow on the side of this mountain

“Well, I can’t fuckin’ leave you here This snowstoro on for al almost two feet of snow or oing to hurt you”

“Oh, sopsychopaths announce their intentions to their victims now?” I lower my voice to a mock man’s psycho voice “Excuseyou now Please, renated killing area”

He lets out a deep laugh and a long sigh

“You’re cute but I’ behind you when you lost control of your car And, I rateful I’m even here Not many people drive this road”

Terrific! Backwoods road that no one ever uses! The murder scene could not be planned out any better

I stand et yourself out of my doorway”

He lights up a cigarette and takes a few long drags before responding toyou here I don’t know if its cuz you hit your head, or if you’re just mentally unstable, or what but I sure as shit a you are So, stop being unreasonable A friend of et to the cabin and have him tow your car out of here when the storm is over

I know Sasquatch is right I can’t stay in the car and just wait for soet more than zero bars on o with hied killer on the loose

“Fine,” I mutter in defeat

He stands up and brushes the snow off hi snow everywhere, then takes his sunglasses off to wipe the snowflakes off theo”

I squint up at hi black kohl eyeliner under his incredibly ereen eyes Seriously, eyeliner?

“Excuseeyeliner?”

He rolls his eyes and shrugs “Never lasses back on

I can’t let it go “Are you so?”

“Fuck to the no”