Page 119 of Snowed In
“You looked after me for a whole day?”
Her expression turns wary. “What was I supposed to do? You had a migraine, not the plague. And you’re probably still recovering from it. Please get back into bed.”
“I need a shower and shave,” I say instead, feeling a pang of hunger for the first time. “And breakfast.”
“Youneedto rest,” she says. “At least for a few hours. I told your Mam we’d be back after lunch, and I still need to— What?” she asks, suddenly wary when she sees my expression.
“That’s what I was coming up to tell you,” I say. “I don’t think we’re going to get on the road today. Looks like it snowed pretty heavily last night. We’re not getting that car free.”
She huffs, not believing me, but when I just stand there, she whirls around, storming back into the bedroom, where she comes to an abrupt stop.
“Did you think I was lying?” I ask, as I follow her to the window.
“What the hell?”
“It was forecast.”
“Not this much,” she says, staring out at the snow. “What are we going to do?”
“Stay here.” I shrug. “Even if we can dig out the car, the roads will be blocked. We’re halfway up a mountain.”
“That doesn’t mean they can’t clear the roads.”
“No, but not this quickly. It will probably take them a few days.”
“Days?”
I pause at the hint of panic in her tone. “We’re fine here,” I say slowly, but she doesn’t seem to be listening, her eyes darting around the scene outside like she’s looking for an escape.
“What if there’s a power cut?”
“Why would there be—”
“Because of the snow,” she snaps. She opens the sliding door, heedless of the cold, and steps out onto the balcony.
“If there’s a power cut, we’ve got a working fireplace and a shed full of chopped wood,” I remind her. “As well as enough food and drink to last us two weeks.”
“But what if—”
“Here’s what I think is happening,” I interrupt, as her voice climbs higher. “And please tell me if I’m wrong. But I think you’re freaking out about the storm, and understandably experiencing some form of claustrophobia, and now you’re looking for the worst possible outcome wherever you can. Yes, we’re stuck. But it will be a day or two at most. We have plenty of food and plenty to do. We’ll be fine.”
“But—”
“If you really want to go, we can go. It’s not going to be easy to get out, and we’ll need help, but we’re not trapped here. We can leave whenever we want to, and it’s not like no one knows where we are.”
Her lips press together, but she looks mollified. “We can call someone if we need to?”
“We can,” I promise. “We can do it right now.”
But she’s already shaking her head. “I don’t want to ring the emergency services for something like this,” she says. “They’ll be busy enough as it is.”
She stares out at the trees, tapping her finger against her arm as she thinks. If she wants me to get her home, I will. I’ll get myself suited and booted and hike down the mountain until I can find someone to come out to us.
I just really wish she doesn’t.
“We’re going to miss Christmas,” she says eventually.
“According to who?” I ask. “We’ve got movies. We’ve got food. People spend a lot of money to have Christmas here, and we get to do it for free.”
