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I have a feeling whoever Max and Joe hired to cofor a reward, they took the money and ranThey must have followed me from town to find me this fast

I look around, wondering if so I can’t call the police — I don’t have a phone and even if I did, ould I say?

I need to keep ain Find me Take me back to Max and Joe, and make me pay

I have six dollars to as in the tank

Sing, I put the groceries in the seat next tofor a Christ lot, not wanting to get stuck on the freeway Instead I turn toward Juniper Junction, a town I’ve never heard of with a sign on the side of the road telling me the population is 1200

As I pass through it, I focus on breathing steadily Reaching into the bag of groceries, I pull out the candy cane and unwrap it with one hand It’s sweet and pepperminty and calms me down I can handle this I’ve been in ht now I just need to find a free place to sleep

The town is adorable And if I were living a different life, I’d walk down the sidewalk covered in snow andshop Wreaths are on each door, a tree lit in the center of town There’s an ice skating rink and children laughing in a snowbank as they build a snowman

It’s quaint and perfect and the kind of tohere everyone knows your name

What would that be like, to feel so safe that you could let down your guard?

I doubt I will ever know

Turning on the radio, I drown outup athe quarter tank will only getthatdriveways that have been carefully snoed,in smoke from chimneys and driveways filled with cars I need the exact opposite I need an eot about

There is a sign on the left with an arrow pointing to Prancer Place The driveway hasn’t been cleared and that means either someone is up at the cabin alone and hasn’t ventured out, or no one is there at all

The sky is growing dark and the gas tank is nearing empty I don’t have a choice

I take a chance and turn onto the narrow drive of Prancer Place,fast as the cabin comes into view

There is no car parked anywhere, and there is no shts on in the house

I parkthis place to be empty

As I get out of the car and step through the foot of snow, I brace myself for the worst I knock on the door, hard When there is no answer, I press my face to theand look inside It’s hard to see with the sun setting, but I can make out furniture and a river rock fire place

My heart buoys with hope and I try the doorknob to see if it was left unlocked It’s closed up tight Bitingwhen I see a key under it

Using it on the door, I exhale with relief as it opens Tears slide down hts They work I won’t have to sleep in ht I will have a warure out a planIt doesn’t take s fro the law — this is not ht to be here — but it does feel like thearound the cabin alone, but as I pull out a can of soup and warm it up on the stove, I pinchbreaks, unless you count

The house doesn’t appear to have had a visitor in a long ti, the place is ice cold and there a cobwebs in every corner But still, it feels safe Max and Joe can’t pawndealer when they don’t knoho I am