From the Mists

Chapter 03: Return to Pine Falls

(Hey there everyone! Just want to give a HUGE thank you to everyone for reading/listening to this story! It really means a lot to me, and I'm beyond stoked to have you here! It's a lot of fun to write, and to do these read4reads! I hope you continue to enjoy! This chapter is pretty exposition heavy, so hope you are ready... I know it's a lot, but trust me, this info is relevant. And, of course, here is a link to the YT channel where I post the audiobooks: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hyQaGReq6Tg)

CHAPTER 03 : Return to Pine Falls

"Annabelle, wake up sis."

Defiantly, Annabelle rolled over in her bed, sweat coating her brow. She had finally fallen asleep, after all, and it had taken ages for her to do so... only to be woken up again by Isabelle.

"Mom says we're leaving in thirty minutes," she then stated.

"What?" Annabelle asked groggily. "What time is it?"

"It's half past four," Isabelle replied. "Apparently the storm has slowed down enough to where we can safely leave... but... I don't know, it's coming back. Either need to get out of here quickly."

"Huh?" Annabelle was not at all satisfied with this response, as it made little sense to her. Nevertheless, she sat up, feeling frustrated as she felt her slumber had been cut far too short. Following such along day, she was hoping that she could continue her snooze into the afternoon at least, but it simply wasn't to be. She supposed her mother did warn her this could be the case, but this thought did little to ease her frustrations. Nevertheless, she sat up, wiping sleep from her eyes as she let out a prolonged yawn.

"What a vacation that was," she then stated. "We haven't even been here for two days."

"Yeah, I suppose it just wasn't meant to be," Isabelle stated nonchalantly, leaving Annabelle to think that her sister might have been secretly hoping she'd be going home sooner rather than later. While Annabelle enjoyed the prolonged summers at the cabin, she knew full well that Isabelle had other views - she'd likely have been happier at home, closer to her friends, than cooped up at the secluded lake.

"What were you saying about the storm just now, sis," Annabelle then questioned, hoping that her sister could elaborate on her previous statement. "What do you mean by, 'it's coming back'?"

Isabelle frowned in response. "Look, mom explained it rather quickly," she responded. "Something having to do with it stalling over Lake Superior, I don't know. But the point is, it's not snowing now, and it will be snowing later, and much more heavily than it was before."

"Great," Annabelle replied sternly. "So much for a sunny day."

Annabelle let out another yawn and a stretch before clumsily lumbering out of bed. "Thirty minutes isn't very much time, so I'd hurry and pack up," Isabelle then informed her, as she exited the bedroom to return to her own packing. Annabelle groaned, still fighting drowsiness as she made her way around the bedroom, stuffing her belongings back into her suitcase. This wasn't at all the vacation she had in mind, after all, as she had been hoping for a lot more time lying around at the beach, soaking up the sun. It seemed that mother nature had other plans for them that year though, that is, assuming mother nature was to blame at all for this catastrophe. Images of the mists lingered in Annabelle's mind, her thoughts going to just how unnatural they were- certainly mother nature couldn't be linked to them, right?

Ten minutes passed of nothing but silence and the ticking of the grandfather clock in the living room, until Annabelle heard the voice of her mother. Judging by her tone, she could tell that she was both irate and flustered, and it didn't take long for Annabelle to deduce why. "Come on Jeanine, we need to be reasonable here," she stated to her grandmother. "If you stay here, you'll only end up getting yourself snowed in, and then what? The storm may have calmed down for now, but it will be returning quickly, and more fiercely than before."