Reprisal

(1)

I jump in the air with excitement as I tell my sister on the phone that I got the job as a housekeeper. The interview went perfectly. It was so fluent. No tough questions. The pay is even amazing. Paying the bills will be the least of my worries. Katie has always supported me and congratulated me on my finest achievements. I clasp at my coat and tuck my phone into the coat pocket on my chest. Snow was falling so fast it was like being inside a blizzard. As I made my way back home on foot, the snow started to settle.

"When do you start working?" Katie asks me with politeness. I stamp through the thick and sticky snow, which felt like stepping on ice-cold cotton.
"Monday. So I have two days roughly." I reply with confidence.

"That is nice. What is the wage?" Katie spoke softly. The wind was starting to pick up now and I was still a good couple of miles away. I cross my arms to try and warm myself but the brisk and numbing cold wind knocked the heat out of me.
"Do you need a lift? I'm near the woods taking a walk." Kate chuckles with sweetness.
"You are walking in this weather? You nutbar!" I pause in shock.

"No silly. I was joking. I'm in my car. I was meant to pick up a parcel at a cabin. Don't worry it doesn't seem dodgy. It looks cosy as well." Kate groans.

"What's wrong?" I ask while continuing to walk on what now feels like needles.

"Nothing. My back aches. Don't worry." Kate sighs deeply. I would trek for another hundred metres without talking, shivering and biting my most probably, blue lip. The icy path leading to a junction was perilous with tough snow and ice. One false step and I would slide into the road which has been pretty much turned into an ice rink and I'm a terrible skater.

"I'm gonna go. Call if you need anything, bae." I end the call and continue to hike through the deepening and seeping snow. Miles later, I made it home almost freezing to death. I tremble and shake as I reach for my keys. I plug the key into the hole with speed and a flush of refreshing, warm and soothing air shocks my system. I slam the door shut and breathe fairly deeply. The only thing I could hear in the dimly, orange illuminated house was the ticking of the kitchen clock.

Listening to it almost made me fall asleep and I decided to rest my head on the sofa and drift into a deep slumber. I remember the dream I had that one night. It was so strange. It started as a memory but turned into some sort of nightmare.

There was a bang on my front door. It was like a panther had pawed at it or an elephant trunk had hit it furiously. I look through the peephole and see a freezing man with an iced coat. His lips were so blue it looked like he had bitten into pure ice. I reach for the door handle cautiously and the old man rushed in with several groans of pain.

"Excuse me!" I bellow with fury.

Then he drops to the floor like a container falling from a crane. I hurry and call the ambulance service. However, my phone has only a small percentage of battery left. At least five per cent. The old man was suffering from hypothermia. Also, his body became very floppy. He was dipping in and out of consciousness. I knew this man was about to die. But I didn't know why he chose this door.

"Do you know CPR?" The emergency responder asks me on the phone.

"Yes." I groan as I push on the old man's chest with excessive force.

"Keep pushing until you feel a beat." I press my fingers onto his throat and feel the throbbing beat of his heart.

"Make sure he has oxygen flowing through his body. Check if he is breathing."

The paramedics rush in several minutes later and take him into the ambulance outside.

"Am I allowed to tag along? The poor man will want to see me." I say to the paramedic in the driver's seat.

I figured the man got so affected by the cold that he struck a serious stage of hypothermia. But it wasn't as cold as the other night. It was nowhere near close to last night either. I jump into the back and sit with the man at his side. Twelve minutes later we would reach the hospital and I would sit next to his heart monitor in a ward.

"I'll leave you be. Nurses will pop in and out of the ward to check on him. Call if you need anything. May I ask for your name?" A doctor smiles through his mask.
"Skyler Smith." I brush little bits of snow off of my shoulder. The only thing keeping me warm was my tight jumper and my coat. I didn't even know who this man was. It came as a shock to me that all of a sudden he barged into my house and almost died. Then I remembered that I was the one that saved him. I didn't feel heroic in the slightest. I almost felt guilty for yelling at him. The heart rate monitor beeped slowly and steadily. My heart rate certainly wasn't and I can tell you that. I've never witnessed such a thing before. Suddenly my thoughts are interrupted when a policeman walks in arrogantly.

"Name, please. I also need a statement on the situation just to be on the safe side. I'm the Sergeant. It's nice to meet you." I shake his hand hesitantly. In my opinion, he seemed like an absolute dick. Waltzing in like he owned the place. Maybe the situation was getting to my head.

"Do I need to go now? Can't you see I'm beside the man I saved, sir?" I narrowed my eyebrows.

"Yes. You'll be back within an hour. We need you at the station." The Sergeant demanded. I followed him into his vehicle and I snapped at the sergeant.
"Why do you want me at the station? I saved the bloody man!" I hiss. The car revs into action and drives on the slippery roads.
"Just in case you had hurt him or something. Listen, anything could've happened without a witness. Just to be on the safe side."
Several long minutes later, I sat in front of a detective who asked me life-changing questions. Almost life-changing.