The Winter People Read Online Free PDF Page B

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    ***
    Nick's left brain
kicked him in the temple to get his attention just before he passed the turn
off to the cabin.  Just past the Ranger Station was the dirt road he would need
to take, although now it was covered in packed snow.  Before he made the left
turn, Nick glanced once more in the rear-view mirror.  He saw nothing.  Though
there was some light from the station to break the dark, it was still
impossible to see very far.  He had been keeping track of the others by
watching the two dots of light that seemed to float through space in the
blackness, following a strange course that was the winding path of the road.
    Nick sighed then
made the turn.  He knew that he was going to have to come back out and find
them.  He had the feeling that they were stuck again.  "Damn," he
mumbled to himself.
    He continued on,
following the curves and grades of the now one lane road for the next three
miles to the cabin.  Uncle Bud had left the deck light on for them.  His real
name was Harlan and Nick didn't know how he had come to be called
"Bud", he only knew that no one had ever called him Harlan.  It was a
good thing the porch light was on, it was pitch black out here and without that
light Nick could easily have missed it.
    There was no way
to actually drive up to the cabin.  They had to park on the road and hike up. 
Fortunately the plow had made a wide spot in the road in front of the place. 
Probably at his uncle's request, Nick guessed.  Nick went ahead and turned the
car around so that it would be facing the direction he figured he would need to
go in a few minutes.
    "Okay guys,
we're here."  The others slowly began to stir.
    "Wake up you
bums!  C'mon," Nick urged and Mike and Sarah came around groggily.
    Mike rubbed his
eyes beneath his glasses and stretched his face muscles which worked itself
into a yawn, then looked around.  "Where are Mo and The Tails?" he
asked.  Mo was their universal abbreviation for Marty and The Tails for
Taylor.  Not that The Tails was any shorter, just more fun.  Mike then began
searching for his left glove.
    "They’re
probably stuck in a snow bank somewhere."  In Sarah's voice was mock
sarcasm but it was all just good natured kidding.  She and Mike laughed but
Nick only smiled.
    "Go ahead and
laugh, butt brains.  I'm the one that's got to go find them."  Nick was
obviously not pleased with the prospect.
    "Oh, they'll
be along in a minute.  You know how slow he drives," Sarah said.  She had
gathered her things and was climbing out the driver side door to stand next to
Nick.  Mike was still looking for his glove.
    "Brrrrrr! 
It's cold out here!" she chattered out.  She knew she should be able to
see her breath but the wind was carrying it away.  It was literally ripping it
out of her lungs.
    Mike finally found
his glove and climbed out his door.  "Want me to lock it Nick?"
    "Nah.  No
one's out here to bother it.  Besides, I have the feeling that I'll be back
down here in a minute anyway."  He was showing signs of being disgusted. 
Then Nick looked to his left and right, "I guess Bryan and Aunt Ruth
haven't made it yet?"
    Sarah replied,
"No, they're not coming until tomorrow."  Almost as an afterthought
she added, "If the weather holds, that is."
    "Oh, I
thought it was tonight."
    "That's what
you get for thinking'," Sarah ribbed.
    Mike closed his
door and when the dome light went out they were encased in total darkness. 
They could barely make out each other's shapes.  If you asked them if someone
was standing near them they would have said yes only because they knew that
someone had been there.  Without the light, each of them felt completely alone
with nondescript shadows as companions.
    "Shit!  I
can't see a damned thing!" Sarah remarked, squinting in the darkness.  The
trees had blocked nearly all of the light from the cabin to their position on
the roadside.  After a few moments their eyes adjusted and they could make out
indentations of a