Page 10 of The Dinner Party

You wrench open the car door and step outside. The wind is brutal. You brace yourself against it as you step around to the front of the car, which is blocked by a mound of snow. You’re also horrified to discover that the ice has scratched up the side of the car—Blair is going to kill you.

Now what are you going to do? It’s not like you have a shovel. You could check the trunk, but you’re pretty sure Blair isn’t the kind of person who keeps a shovel in her trunk.

Maybe you should have stayed inside the car. Maybe that would’ve been a smarter decision.

Just as you’re contemplating whether you should get back in the car and wait with the heat on, you hear a loud thump from behind you. It’s loud enough that the whole earth seems to tremble, and then a second, louder thump echoes through the night air.

What the hell is that?

You should not have gotten out of the car—you made a grave mistake. You’ve got to get back inside, if it isn’t already too late. You don’t know what that sound was, but you know you are in terrible danger.

You turn around, your heart pounding. And now you get an eyeful of a terrible creature—like something out of your nightmares. It’s at least twice as large as you are, and covered in white fur. It has sharp yellow fangs and angry dark eyes. You have never seen anything that terrifying in your entire life. It feels like your heart is about to explode out of your chest.

And then everything goes black.

Turn to Chapter 18 (page 42)

18

You wake up on the frigid, hard ground.

You have no idea where you are. You only know that you are cold, but warmer than you were when you were standing outside your car. You blink a few times, trying to focus. You’re someplace dark, but there’s a flickering light coming from about six feet away—a fire. That must be what’s providing the warmth.

And then you realize where you are:

Inside a cave.

How did you get here? You only remember that terrifying creature rushing towards you, his claws drawn. Then the next thing you knew, you were opening your eyes in this place.

The creature must have brought you here as his prisoner.

You struggle into a sitting position, rubbing your head, which feels sore. You’re dimly aware of a noise coming from behind you. A grunting sound.

It turns out you’re not alone in this cave.

You whirl around, expecting to come face-to-face with that monster. But the monster isn’t here. Instead, you find a man bound and gagged on the ground about ten feet away from you. He has wild hair and a bushy beard. He looks strangely familiar…

Wait. Is that the hitchhiker you saw on your way here? The one you didn’t pick up, because you didn’t want to be late to the dinner party?

Yes! It is!

Apparently, the furry yeti monster has taken both you and the hitchhiker as his prisoners. You’re not sure what his plan is, but you wouldn’t be surprised if you end up being his dinner. But the strange (well, strangest) part is that only the hitchhiker has been physically restrained. His wrists and ankles are bound with rope, while yours have been left free. The monster probably thinks that you won’t be a threat to him because you’re a woman. What a sexist monster.

The hitchhiker grunts more loudly, trying to get your attention. Your legs still feel too weak to stand, so you crawl across the cold floor to where he’s lying. He has a cloth tied around his mouth that serves as a gag. You pull it down so that he can speak to you.

“Thank God!” he gasps. “When you were just lying there, I thought for sure you were… well, you know.”

You rub your sore scalp, wondering if that’s why the monster didn’t tie you up. Maybe he, too, thought that you were dead.

“You’ve got to untie me,” the hitchhiker says urgently. “He took off about 15 minutes ago, but he could be back at any time. We’ve got to get out of here. Now.”

“Right,” you say, but then you hesitate.

“Come on,” the hitchhiker urges you. “We don’t have much time. If he gets back here, he’ll kill us both for sure.”

He’s right. You’re both stuck in the cave of a terrifying yeti monster, who could probably kill you both with one hand tied behind his back. Your only chance to survive is to get the hell out of here.

Yet…