Then, I find my wallet. A familiar warm feeling makes my heart swell. This is my sister’s wallet. I miss her so much. I never miss our weekly check-ins. She knows something is wrong, and I wouldn’t be surprised if she has the National Guard looking for me right now because I know how crazy protective she is. I open it, and sure enough, my identification cards are tucked inside. I pull out the Texas-issued one first and find my name on it. The black-and-white portrait of me is unscathed right next to all my information.
Coraline Rosa. 5’1. Hispanic. San Antonio, Texas. Organ Donor.
The ground begins to vibrate. The sensation runs up my legs as I continue to tiptoe into the car. Then, the sound of something cracking sends a shiver down my spine. My eyes widen as I push myself out of the vehicle.
A bolt of fear strikes deep into my gut when I spot a pack of wolves in the cracked rearview mirror. One of them stepped on glass, leaving a small trail of dark red underneath its paw. The wallet slips from my trembling hands. The one in the front is the biggest. Massive, light ocean eyes, sharp and texturized, with a white and silver coat. She’s beautiful. If it weren’t looking at me like I’m its next meal, I’d pet it. With a snarl, the wolf flashes me its sharp teeth. Its tongue swipes its lips as it takes more slow, calculated steps my way. The rest of the pack start to howl behind it and bark at me like they’re ready for the command to take me out from their leader. All of them disperse, circling me as they bolt left and right on their paws. They jump with excitement, vividly hungry, and they’ve chosen me as their next meal.
“Go!” I shout. “Go away!” I warn, flailing my hands in front of my chest.
A deep and low rumbling overpowers their growls and the sound of my blood thrashing in my ears. I would turn my head toward the origin, but I don’t want to look away, and then I’mgetting blindsided by jaws. All of the wolves make a high-pitched whimper, their gazes suddenly off me and somewhere else. They all scatter and follow the silver-tailed leader. I track them as they amble in the direction of the woods.
The mysterious loud roars send reverberations through the ground, rattling my boots. I flick my gaze to my feet, then back to the last spot I saw the pack running through. They’re gone. Whatever this sound is, it’s scaring them off. They’ve disappeared through the trees with no more signs of wildlife.
Is this an earthquake?
Before I can move or think, I get the answer to my own question. It’s not an earthquake. It’s an avalanche. Hundreds of feet of snow are falling off the peak that’s right by Gavin’s ranch. I see it every morning I wake up, and right now a piece of it is falling straight on top of me. I abandon the car and trudge through the feet of snow.
I run like my life depends on it, because it does. I keep going with tears rolling down my face, the sound of the snow falling behind me growing louder and louder. I’m not running fast enough!
The snow envelopes me, sticking to my body. I find myself unable to lift my knees smoothly as I stumble deeper into white ice. It’s burying me, swallowing my screams, crashing against my back, forcing me to hold my breath.
I couldn’t get away in time.
“No!” I shrill, but the sound doesn’t go anywhere, staying trapped inside more ice.
I’m still alive.
I’m still alive even though I’m buried. Fighting through it, I do my best to make space to breathe. But the more snow I push out with my hands, the more that comes rushing back in, coating and violently rocking against my face. I keep my mouth closed so I don’t swallow it. I swing, kick, scream—fighting until I can see the sky again, but nothing but more white keepstrampling my face. Panic settles in as I keep probing for something to pull me out, but I keep coming up empty. I’m sinking deeper into the snow every time I jump in place. Blinding white envelops me. I flap my arms up and down, holding my breath as I try to make an opening, but nothing happens.
Everything burns on the inside as my lungs scream at me, desperate for air. With every flail, I let out a strangled cry. I don’t know how long it’s been, but it feels like hours that I’ve been screaming and fighting. Growing weaker, my vision dims with darkness as I slip into unconsciousness, still attempting to resist death.
CHAPTER 14
GAVIN
Coraline’s desperate voice echoes into my ears. Even though she’s only been in my house for a week, I know her voice like my favorite catchy song that’s stuck in my head; no matter how many times I try to forget the melody, it’s still there. It’s distinct. Light, airy, and sweet.
But she’s also annoyingly stubborn and has a habit of making really stupid decisions, like going against my advice and trying to look for her cell phone that’s most likely buried in feet of snow, broken, or flew out of the car and is on the street she lost control on. During a record-breaking blizzard. I wasn’t exaggerating when I said lots of wild animals roam my property, but I guess she’s intrigued to challenge me and curious to be eaten.
Her scream sounds more guttural and uneasy with each strangled blare. There are no words, just sounds of clear desperation and urgency. I swing my hunting rifle over my shoulder and stalk faster. The horses should be okay for the rest of the blizzard. They’re safe, well-fed, and warm. My boots crunch over the thick snow. I’m wearing my black winter balaclava and winter hunting camo gear.
The visibility is slim to none due to thick white fog. Running through it, I head straight to where I think she is, but then her screams stop, and it gives me a sick sensation in my stomach. Something about how her sounds stopped has me on high alert. Her voice is coming by…
No.
She better not be where I think she is!
My heart sinks, and I begin to run faster. I push through the trees and gaze at the river that is in the corner of my land—the one the horses like to spend time around during the summer. Sure enough, there’s an avalanche of snow burying the car.
She’s in there.
I know she is.
Fucking hell.
This woman really does have a death wish.
CHAPTER 15
