Her heart was in her chest, and blood pumped wildly through her veins as she saw tree after tree. But it was all happening so fast that she couldn't comprehend everything. A tree. The elk. A drop off. And then, she was going over the side of the embankment and sliding.
Terror froze her in place with her hands white-knuckling the steering wheel. The car was rolling down. The world in front of her spun out of control as she tumbled down the embankment. Things were hitting her body and her head and she banged against the inside of the car even though she was securely belted in her seat. And then she abruptly stopped.
It took a few seconds for her to catch her breath and to see in front of her. Adrenaline raced through her body. She had an odd sensation and then realized she wasn’t sitting upright. She was on her side and the weight of her body was pulling against the seatbelt.
It hurt to move her head, but she forced herself to so she could get her bearings. She turned to the right and saw a big drop. The car was propped up by a few trees that weren't taken down by her car rolling down the mountain.
She had to get out of the car in case the trees gave way. The only problem was that she was stuck. Everything was quiet and cold and serene at the same time. Reaching her hand up to her head, she felt wetness on her fingers. Her stomach rolled as if the car was still moving and she felt dizzy. She leaned her head back and closed her eyes.
She wasn’t sure how long she’d sat there with her eyes closed. The car was getting cold and she began to shiver. But the stars she’d seen when she’d bumped her head were gone and she didn’t feel dizzy like she was going to pass out.
Someone was chopping…or knocking. She wasn’t sure.
Harper opened her eyes and saw Nash Webber at the driver’s side window. He was knocking lightly on the door and calling to her.
“Are you hurt?” he asked.
So much was confusing to Harper. She was on her side and felt heavy. Her seatbelt dug into her shoulder and her side. When she opened her eyes wide and peered out the passenger window, she saw nothing but mounds of snow and small trees that were growing in a funny direction. She turned back, looked out the driver’s side window again, and focused on the position Nash was in. His hand was not on the car at all. He was holding some sort of a strap that was tethered to something somewhere Harper couldn't see. Her shoulder felt as if it was on fire.
“I’m…I'm okay,” she said. She was okay. If she felt pain, then she was alive. That was something.
“Don't move. Not at all. I want you to take your instruction only from me. Do you understand?”
“Yes.”
Nash disappeared for a few minutes. At least it seemed like only a few minutes. She was starting to feel the pain in her head and time was a little sketchy. She saw strange shadows in front of her but it didn't make any sense. Then she realized her headlights were on and she could see some light against the snowflakes that were falling. It was getting darker. And that was odd. She hadn't expected it to get dark for least another half hour. How long had she been like this? She reached her hand out and touched the heat register. It was cold. It had been blasting heat just fine while she’d been driving.
“Can you try to unlock the door?” Nash asked, suddenly appearing in the driver side window again.
Confused at his position, she leaned forward as best she could to look out. Her head was swimming so badly she slumped back against the headrest and closed her eyes.
She heard the knock on the window again. When she opened her eyes Nash appeared a bit panicked. “Stay with me. Don't go to sleep.”
Asleep? Why on earth would she sleep in her car?
“Make sure you stay still,” Nash said. “If you can reach the lock, unlock the door and I will open it. You’re going to feel a burst of cold air hit you, but don’t worry, and don’t move. Do you understand?”
Cold air. Yes, she was cold. She turned her head and nodded.
“Here we go,” Nash said.
He yanked on her door but it wouldn't budge. “Did you unlock the door?”
She reached her hand up and it felt strangely heavy. Then she fumbled around the door armrest until she found the button that unlocked the door. As soon as she did, she closed her eyes and rested her head against the headrest again as if that one small move had zapped all of her energy. Her head was resting in an odd position. She felt as if she was floating.
Within a few seconds, she heard the door open and then the rush of cold air Nash had mentioned. Wet snow came into the car along with the cold air, shocking her skin and her senses.
“You had quite a tumble down that embankment. You're very lucky,” Nash said. She watched him as he did a quick check of her arms and neck and then looked at her head. It felt so weird to have a man touching her like this. When his hands reached her thigh, she pushed his hand away.
“Hey. Knock that off.”
She heard his low chuckle. “I'm not getting funny with you. I promise. Just checking to see if you have any broken bones. The more you're able to help me, the quicker we’ll be able to get you out of this car and up to safety.”
“Up?”
“Looks like you rolled a few times down this embankment before these trees caught you. You took down a lot of young saplings along the way. But these two trees were sturdy enough to hold
