 Everything around Tyler was white. He squinted against the wind and tried to roll over to provide himself with some shelter, but it was impossible to move. Even with the cloudy sky and snow that was now only lightly falling, the reflection of light against the ground-cover snow was bright enough to make it hard to see. That didn’t explain why he was having a difficult time moving. There was something hard against his back, and Tyler shifted his weight, trying to sit up more. A gust of wind blew up and cut through his sweater to his skin. Tyler shuddered and moved his head to look down at his body. His neck was stiff, and his hair was stuck to his forehead. He wore nothing but his boots, jeans, and sweater. No coat, gloves, or hat. No coat! The words rampaged through his brain. Panic surged through him. This was his worst nightmare come true. Trapped in the cold, unable to move, escape not the slightest bit feasible. He clamped his teeth together against their chattering. First you get cold and shiver. Then you get warm and the shivering stops. Then you go to sleep. You go to sleep and never wake up. It wouldn’t hurt, but Tyler was terrified. He didn’t want to die. He wanted to wake up every time he went to sleep. Snow made a good insulator. The problem was he couldn’t wiggle around to blanket himself with what nature was providing. Something moved just beyond his periphery. It didn’t sound like a cougar, at least Tyler didn’t think so, and bears would still be hibernating. Then again he wasn’t exactly an expert. He tried to calm down and assess what he did know: he was on the ground, he couldn’t move and didn’t know why. Even an elk—or any large animal really—could be deadly. A cougar or angry bull moose would have been much preferable to what walked into his field of vision. Dressed in a very dark blue heavy coat, snow pants, and helmet was the snowmobile rider. The unknown person walked with slow, deliberate steps until they stood with a foot on either side of Tyler’s legs. “Who are you?” Tyler croaked. He blinked a few falling snowflakes away and tilted his head so he could stare at his assailant with what he hoped was at least a small measure of defiance. “Take the fucking goggles off and face me like a man.” The person laughed. It was a distinctly feminine voice. She lifted the goggles and pulled the helmet off. The goggles she put inside the helmet, and that she set on the snow beyond where Tyler’s feet might reach them—if by some small chance he could move them. “Who are you? Why are you doing this? What did I ever do to you?” The woman turned and stepped away a foot or so, spun, and kicked Tyler viciously in the ribs. He clamped his teeth shut trying to block his cry but wasn’t completely successful. “You really don’t know what you did, what you all did?” she snarled. “I’ve never met you,” Tyler wheezed. “I-I’m going to f-freeze.” He recognized her face from the photos in his yearbook, but he didn’t know her name. Tyler was sure he’d never met this woman. “P-please.” She arched an eyebrow. “I know.” Coming closer she leaned down and tugged on something at Tyler’s side. He realized why he couldn’t move. Rope was strung in a crisscross webbing across Tyler’s body, keeping him firmly fixed to the ground with his arms at his sides. The rope was fastened to the ground with small metal stakes. “After I’m d-dead y-you’ll take off the r-ropes, and i-it’ll look l-like I w-wandered out here in the s-storm and died.” “You’re smart.” She walked around to his feet and knelt in the snow. Quickly she untied his boots, removed them, and threw them against a tree. His socks followed. She cruelly took a handful of snow and shoved it against the soles of his feet and packed it between his toes. “I don’t want to be out here all damn night waiting for your ass to freeze.” “W-why?” Bait is available in eBook, paperback, through Kindle Unlimited and your local library digital catelog.     Comments are closed.
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