Chapter 36

THIRTY-SIX

Escape seemed futile. Carolyn searched every inch of the cabin looking for a way out. The windowpanes were too small to crawl through and the front door was solid. There was no way of breaking the lock. After hammering her fists on the wooden panels, she cried out in frustration and then went to sit in front of the fire. The floorboards creaked beneath her feet and she moved back and forth feeling the give in the old wood. She thrust the coffee table to one side and tossed the mat out of the way to inspect the floor. A cold draft seeped through the gap where the boards had shrunk. She scanned the room for something to use to pry up the floorboards and her gaze rested on the poker. She tested the strength in her hand, in truth she'd thought of using it as a weapon, but he was too big. He'd disarm her in seconds.

She fell to her knees and dug the end of the poker down the crack between the floorboards and wiggled it back and forth. The ripping nails whined as she dislodged the floorboard and peered down the hole. She jumped up and ran to the bench to grab the lantern, returned to the hole in the floor, and pushed it into the darkness. Underneath the cabin was dirt, animal scat, and so many cobwebs she couldn't see very far, but the gap between the floorboards and the ground was wide enough for her to crawl through. She attacked the second floorboard and dragged it out to make a gap big enough for her to climb through. The bitter cold rushed through the hole, sending goosebumps running down her arms. If she planned to live through her escape, she would need to protect herself from the weather and take food and water with her, but how much time did she have? She had no idea when her captor would return and he could easily follow her tracks in the snow.

Running into the bedroom for her backpack she dragged out her clothes and dressed in as many clothes as she could fit under her coat. Next, she wrapped bottled water in her PJ's, a few cans of beans, a can opener, and a spoon and pushed them into her backpack. Her boots were waterproof and dry and she had her gloves, a woolen hat, a scarf, and the hood of her coat to keep her warm. She gathered a few other necessities: the lantern, a lighter, and a roll of toilet paper. She didn't have a flashlight but she hoped she would find another cabin along the way before it got dark. The lantern would just have to do. She eased her way down into the hole and shivered as fat spiders ran to get out of her way. Her fear of enclosed spaces gripped her by the throat as she looked around for a way out. The extra clothes had made it difficult for her to move her arms and legs, but by pushing her backpack in front of her to clear her way, she managed to crawl toward the back of the cabin.

Sweat was dripping between her shoulder blades as she edged closer to the back wall. The uneven ground made a gap narrow in places. Gritting her teeth she pushed onward, through the filthy, stinking dirt. She dislodged a bundle of dry grass ahead of her and disturbed a nest of rats that, instead of running away, ran all over her, their tiny claws sticking in her hair. She screamed and they scampered in all directions. Moving as fast as she possibly could, she dragged herself to the edge of the cabin. All around her was a wall of snow and under her the ground had frozen solid. She turned around and, lying on her back, ignored the spiders crawling around in the cobwebs above her and kicked a hole in the snow. She turned around and, using her backpack, punched at the white wall. It was harder than she imagined and took every ounce of her strength to push her way through.

At last she could see daylight and wiggled through the hole. The forest surrounded her, hidden behind a wall of white rain, but to one side of the cabin sat a small rickety shed. Vegetation grew over the roof and the wooden exterior was gray and weathered. Paint flakes still clung to the window frame, but one strong puff of wind would topple it. Shrugging into her backpack, and pulling up her hood, she waded through the thick snow. Flurries buffeted her as the wind whistled through the trees and small pieces of ice battered her hood. Exhausted by the time she'd gone the ten yards to the shed, she pushed open the door and peered inside. It was more difficult walking in the snow than she'd imagined. Every time she had gone out in the snow before it had been on skis or riding in a sleigh. Trying to move through drifts so thick was difficult.

Nervous at what she might find, she peered inside the shed. It was empty and she moved inside, hoping to find a flashlight or something he'd left behind she could use. Her attention settled on two things of interest: the first being a pair of snowshoes, the second an old, dilapidated map stuck on the side of the wall. The map had a date on the bottom, of 1969, so how it had survived for so long amazed her. The rats should have made it part of their nest by now. She grabbed the snowshoes. They were the old type made from leather set in a wooden frame, with leather straps to secure them to her feet. Beside them, covered with cobwebs, two poles leaned against the wall.

After securing the snowshoes, she gently took the fragile map from the wall and laid it on the bench. She peered at a spot marked with an X. Beside it was a hand-drawn house. She looked all over, noticing the marked trails leading in all directions. Some of the trails ended with a little house with people's names attached. This must be a map the owner of the cabin first made when he arrived. His closest neighbors lived in the cabins. Many people lived in cabins or used them for hunting or fishing. She recalled getting here on the back of the snowmobile after he'd parked his truck on a fire road. He'd driven the snowmobile along various tracks to get here. She must avoid running into him at all costs but needed to get to shelter as soon as possible. The highway was clearly marked, as was the river. She stared at the map wishing it could give her advice on which way to go. She measured the distance to the closest cabin. She found two set some distance apart, which ran alongside a track with the name Darcy's Way. That track weaved all the way to the highway.

Determined to get to safety, she folded the map with care and pushed it inside her pocket. She stepped out of the shed, surprised to see her footsteps fading already. With luck, he would never know which way she'd gone. There was a strange silence out in the forest. Visibility was limited to a few yards at best and the sudden blasts of wind sent chunks of ice tumbling down from the trees. Walking was easier with the snowshoes as she headed along the track. Using the sticks to keep her balance, she pushed on for some time, gasping for breath before stopping for a short break. Snow filled her eyebrows and yet a trickle of sweat ran down her spine. Moving through the snow was exhausting and she took the time to pull a bottle of water from inside her jacket and take a few sips. The snow was coming thick and fast, as he'd said earlier. It was like being inside a snow globe. His face drifted into her mind and she pushed away from the tree and kept moving. She'd been walking for what seemed like hours when a slow rumble came in the distance. Snowfall dampened noise. Had she traveled in the wrong direction? Was he coming after her. She looked frantically around. The snow was covering her tracks at a fast rate and they'd be obliterated at the cabin by now. She stood still and listened. Perhaps it was him returning to the cabin and he hadn't discovered her missing yet. Turning back to the path, she kept on pushing forward. A whiff of woodsmoke on the air drifted toward her and she quickened her pace. There must be a cabin just ahead. The sound of a snowmobile roared louder, and it was coming toward her. Help was maybe a few yards away but the snow was like quicksand. She lifted her knees in an attempt to go faster and burst out of the forest. Ahead, she made out a cabin with smoke pouring from the chimney. The area outside had been cleared of snow. She could see a truck in a garage. As she ran toward the door, a snowmobile came out of a curtain of white. Carolyn screamed and ran toward the cabin. She tripped and fell. The snowmobile was heading straight for her. He's found me.