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I open the door to the schoolhouse, and even that defiant act has Ember gasping.
“We’re barefoot,” she states. “We can’t just walk out there in the snow.”
“We can, and we will.”
If I have to, I am willing to lose both my feet to frostbite if it means escaping. I hope I don’t have to, and I most certainly don’t want that for Ember, but if the sacrifice has to be made, then so be it.
There isn’t a lot of slack in the chain connecting us, but I believe I can pick Ember up if need be. It will be awkward but can still be done. But not yet. We need to reach the couple before they get too far away. I need Ember to run at the same pace as me.
“Just focus on running and keeping your foot at the same speed as me. We’ll worry about the cold effects later.”
We don’t have time to plan, and we don’t have time to discuss this further, so I jerk her out of the schoolhouse and begin running as fast as Ember’s footing can go.
The couple comes into sight and I consider screaming at the top of my lungs. But they are still far enough away that for them to hear me, means that I have to be loud enough for Richard to also hear me. So, instead, I begin waving my arms frantically in hopes they see us coming.
“A little faster,” I say as I wrap my arm around Ember to keep her close at my side and to prevent her from stumbling.
“It’s too cold,” she says. “We’re going to lose our toes. We should go back before it’s too late.”
I ignore her complaints just as I ignore any discomfort in my feet. Escape is so close.
So close.
We are getting close enough now that I can actually see their expressions on their faces. They’re happy, they’re excited to be spending their day playing in the snow. They have no idea what they are about to see. They are both in their twenties and give off the puppy love vibe. So innocent. So free from worry. So in love without a care in the world.
Then the boy sees me. His expression turns from joy to confusion.
The girl sees me next, and her smile morphs to a look of fear. She sees the chain around our ankles and backs behind her partner for protection.
“Help us,” I call out as we approach. “Help.”
The male fully steps in front of the female as a shield, and though we are the ones asking for help, I can imagine what kind of sight we must be.
“You have to get us out of here,” I say, still hobbling up to them with Ember at my side. “There’s a crazy man here who’s kidnapped us. Call 911 now, but we need to get to your car. Now.”
“What the fuck?” the man says as he looks down and sees that Ember and I are both barefoot, nearly ankle deep in the snow that we keep sinking into with every step.
“Oh my God,” the woman says as her body visibly trembles. “You were kidnapped?”
“We don’t have time to talk. Where’s your car?”
The woman is pulling out her phone with wide eyes. She looks down at the screen and frowns. “There’s no signal.”
“We need to get out of here now,” I say, while the man nods in agreement.
He points to our right. “We’re down the hill some. The snow made it too hard for us to drive to the parking lot. We’re going to have to hike a bit to our Jeep.” He looks back at our feet. “You can’t make it barefoot.”
“Here,” the woman says, as she takes off her gloves. “Try to put these on your feet.”
She hands her gloves to Ember and bends down to help cover her feet. The man does the same with his gloves and gives them to me. Anything is better than nothing, and I’m grateful for the idea and the offer.
The woman then takes off her coat and gives it to Ember. “Don’t worry,” she says. “I have warm winter clothes on underneath.”
The man follows her and does the same, giving me his coat. “Come on,” he says. “Let’s get you both out of here.”
I see Ember look around with panic in her eyes. She’s searching for Richard, and I just pray we get out of here fast enough.
“Hurry,” I say as the four of us start running in the direction of the Jeep.
The gloves make it difficult to run, but the chain around Ember’s and my ankle make it near impossible. I decide to try to pick her up which causes the cuff around my ankle to dig into my flesh, but I ignore the pain. She clings to my shoulders to try to hold on as I plow through the snow with a mission to survive. I can nearly feel the breath of Richard behind me.
