Wolf's Den

She turned the key one more time, the ignition chopped and rasped, clicked and churned. But the engine didn't start. She slammed her hands on the wheel and willed the small Nissan to start. Sighing she bent her head and it fell on the steering wheel with a light thunk.

Damn it. She was stuck in the snow a good 20 miles from town and 30 from her house. Her car wouldn't start and all she had was her light canvas coat for warmth. A blizzard. A freaking blizzard. Where the hell had that been in the weather forecast? She shook her head. This was her own fault, not the weather man's. It was a freak storm that she should have been prepared for, it was Alaska after all. It had been sunny all day, then got cold, the blizzard was on top of them faster then she could walk to her car. Spring, yeah friggin right. She vainly tried her car again. The ignition sputtered but died just the same as the last five times.

She cursed and looked out of the car window. The wind was blasting snow left and right in a swirling dangerous vortex. There was already a good two and a half feet on the ground already, not including the large drifts on the sides of the road. She had been driving a little faster then she should have, anxious to get home. She hit ice and spun out, lodging her car in the snow filled ditch. Now it decided not to start. She turned the key and pulled it out in frustration. Grabbing her coat she scanned what was visible of the tree line and put the blasted garment on.

She knew she should stay in the car and wait till some one found her. She was never good at waiting. She shoved open the car door and felt the fierce icy blast on her face. She flinched and got out of the car. It was colder then she thought with the wind pounding on her face and hands. She quickly shoved them in her pockets and started walking along the side of the road.

Chances are, some one would find her before she got back to town and it got dark. Plenty people drove this stretch every day to get back home to their families. She trudged through the snow, her snow boots which were fashionable didn't do much as far as warmth, but they kept her feet some what dry. The sun was setting and things were getting darker. The wind was picking up and slicing snow against her face like tiny shards of glass.

She kept moving, determined to get to town or the first house she saw. The people up here were very nice and she was sure some one would help her. If she could find some one. She walked for an hour and then maybe two when she stopped shivering. She felt her face and her hands frozen and she pulled them out of her pockets trying to warm them with her breath. Her steps began to slow and she tripped once.

Her hands came out to break her fall and she swore she could feel them crack with they touched the snow. The bitter bitter cold making her fingers painfully numb almost instantly. She felt the snow soak through her jeans and the wetness ice on her legs. She got back up and managed to get walking once more. The woods were suddenly darker. She could barely see the road in front of her as the wind howled and screamed at her. the trees began to darken to deathly shapes that accompanied her on her dreadful walk. She had to be getting close by now.

She was wet and freezing. Her mind worked slowly and her lungs ached, she'd lost all feeling in her legs and only knew they were working because the trees were moving. The wind slammed against her again and again and she crouched in the minute warmth her light coat gave her. She should have stayed in the car, it would have been much nicer in there. At least people would have found her body if she died. But it was too late to turn around now. She was nearly there. She had to be.

The world got dark and she could just barely make out the road because of the trees. She could quite think clearly, it was hard to see straight. She kept taking step after step, she was drifting to the side of the road. Her foot hit something and she fell again. her hand sank deep in the snow and she was surprised when she didn't even feel the sting of it. She looked up and could see only black ahead of her. She was completely numb, unaware of the cold that blasted her face and the wet state of her clothes. She felt her muscles quivering. How long had it been? 4, 5 hours? She couldn't see any light from any where. She turned on her back and looked up at the soft dark grey of the sky.