Page 83 of Release Me

I put on a hat, slipping my feet into my boots, I leave out the back sliding door, locking it after me. I text Ethan telling him I’m on my way, but I don’t hear back. Not that it’s unusual. He probably got caught up at work and I’m planning to take my time getting over there.

The snow smells fresh, and the flakes fall like feathers from the sky, blanketing the ground and everything around it in a light powder.

I take the back way to Ethan’s house. I always do, across the mountain and along the back of the lodge. It takes way too long to go all the way around the lodge and up the main road. I know these mountains so well that I can get there, cutting through the forest and walking along behind the villas and condos.

It’s dark, but the freshly fallen snow casts a white glow on everything. The lifts are still running and there are a few people left out on the mountain, taking advantage of the powder, getting in a few more runs before the mountain closes for the night.

I feel lighter and happier than I’ve ever been in my life and the walk to Ethan’s house is the best way to end my day. I kick a few piles of snow, watching it fly into the air, laughing at how childish it is, but still so fun.

My phone chimes out, and I pull it from my pocket seeing a text from Ethan telling me that he is in fact running late but will meet me soon.

I smile at his protectiveness. Nothing ever happens here at Badger Creek. It’s all tourists and locals. The locals look out for each other, and tourists are just here to ski. If anything happens, it’s a drunken fight at The Matterhorn and it’s broken up before the police even arrive.

I walk along the tree line, the snow beginning to pick up as I make my way along, eventually connecting up with the end of Ethan’s driveway.

It’s long, almost its own road and rightfully so since his house is gated and set back on the mountain. It helps with the privacy, something I’ve grown to like.

I see a shadow of a person heading toward me, hearing the crunch of his feet as we both walk, about to meet up in the middle.

“I can’t believe you walked down the driveway to meet me,” I call out, giving Ethan shit, because he usually drives down.

But he doesn’t say anything and seconds later a pair of headlights appear behind me, partially pulling into the driveway and lighting up what is in front of me and it’s not Ethan.

There’s something about the whole thing that has the hair on the back of my neck standing on end. I swallow hard, looking around and as the car comes to a stop, the man walking toward me picks up his pace.

It’s not Ethan.

“Can I help you?” I yell, fumbling to get my phone from my pocket.

Why the hell did I put it away?

As the man gets closer, I see he’s wearing a mask and when I look behind me, there’s another person exiting the car.

“Ethan!” I yell, praying that the car is his, but it’s not and before I know it, I’m face to face with the masked man and then suddenly, I’m struck in the back of the head.

I fall to the ground, my hand going to my head, feeling the warm, wet blood, my head throbbing. It’s hard to see, the snow falling harder, and my eyes grow heavy, dizziness taking over as I try to stand, and then I’m struck again by something hard.

My world goes black and all I can remember is calling Ethan’s name.