“No. It’s too far.”
“Alan, hunches can be revised and so can plans.”
“I hear you, but we set a limit so we wouldn’t make a bad decision based on…”
Amber interrupted. “It was an arbitrary limit and it was a guideline. I want to make an exception and I want you to come with me.”
Alan looked back in the direction of the snowmobile. Their tracks were getting sloppy—a sign that they were getting tired. It didn’t look far on the map, but there was no telling how rough the terrain would be. Walking in melting snow could drain the energy out of his legs in no time. Amber’s resolve was clear in her eyes. They had come this far and she intended on seeing it through.
“Close your eyes,” she said.
Alan took a breath and leaned against the tree for balance. The map crinkled as his arms relaxed. He thought about when they were in the hotel, after the wedding. They were fighting for their lives and they had made a promise to each other. Amber was going to find the cabin and she wanted him to come.
Alan opened his eyes again.
“Do you feel it? There’s something close, right?” she asked.
“I don’t feel it, but I will come.”
He folded the map again.
Amber led the way. As they climbed the hill, the trees were getting closer on either side. It was less obvious that they were still on a path. Alan glanced behind them again to make sure that they would be able to find their way back. The tracks of their snowshoes would be obvious.
“I think I see something,” Amber said. She was about a dozen paces ahead.
“Stop,” Alan said. “Wait, okay?”
He shed his gloves and fumbled around in his pocket until he found the satellite message device. He tapped out a quick message to Liz with their coordinates. “Going to check on a cabin. Will message again when we’re back.”
With the device back in his pocket, he trudged up to stand next to Amber. It took him a second to see the building through the trees. The line of the roof was the giveaway. Alan tented his hands over his eyes to cut out the glare and he squinted at the place.
“Looks abandoned,” Amber said.
“Why do you…”
“Broken window. Ready?”
He nodded.
She veered a little left and Alan to the right. They closed the distance to the cabin coming from slightly different angles and they didn’t say a word. At one point, Alan paused. He had a strange feeling about the place. Years before, he and his friend Robert had stumbled on a cabin like this in the woods. That cabin had been the home of strange rituals. Alan shook his head, banishing the memory. That place had nothing to do with this one. Entertaining that idea would only prevent him from seeing what was in front of him.
Amber snapped her fingers, bringing Alan back to the present.
She pointed. Creeping forward, he thought he understood what she was gesturing towards. Below one of the windows, there was a place where the snow didn’t quite reach the side of the building. There was a black hole there where he could see into the space under the cabin. They converged on a spot a few paces from the building.
Alan leaned close to whisper, “I don’t think it’s abandoned. Looks like that window was broken by a tree branch—maybe recently.”
“I feel like there’s something under there,” Amber said.
Alan considered that. “I’m not sure if I do or not.”
They stood, looking at the darkness of the crawlspace under the cabin. With the glare from the snow, it was impossible to see anything under there.
“Shoot,” he said.
“What?”
“I just remembered what I forgot to bring—flashlights. There are some in the car, but I didn’t pack them on the…”
Amber pulled a small black cylinder from her pocket and handed it to him. He clicked it on.
She pulled another from her other pocket.
“I don’t go anywhere without them,” she said. “I always have at least two sources of light on me.”
“Perfect,” Alan said.
They crunched forward through the soft snow.
“It could be anything,” Alan said.
“What do you mean?”
“I believe that you feel something is under there, but what if it’s a bear or something? People have instincts about predators—I fully believe that.”
“Good point,” Amber said. She unzipped one jacket and the one underneath. Then she lifted a sweatshirt and revealed a belt pack. From that, she extracted a can. “Bear spray.”
“You’re prepared,” he said.
“I ran out of wasp spray,” she said.
Amber unclipped her snowshoes and stepped into the snow. It wasn’t very deep compared to in the woods. The sunlight reflecting off the side of the building had melted most of it down. What was left was like big, wet, sugary crystals of snow that crunched under her feet. Alan took off his snowshoes as well and followed her, glancing at the flashlight to make sure it was on. She crouched down and tried to get a look.
“It’s too bright out,” she whispered. “I can’t see anything under there.”
“Just be careful,” he said as she crawled forward.
Amber went right to the edge of the building, blocking the sunlight with her back so she could see. Alan watched as she swept her light from one side to the other.
“I don’t see anything,” she said.
“Wait,” Alan said. He was close enough that he could see that there was the faint glow of sunlight from the other side of the cabin. “Stay right there.”
He backed up and trudged around towards the front of the cabin. The snow was deep near the porch, but he was able to stick to the front side of the building and jump down into the snow on the north side of the place. He found where the snow was lowest and pocketed the flashlight so he could begin digging. In a few seconds, he had cleared away enough space that he could lean down and look under. Amber was on the far side, pointing
