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“Damn,” I said and looked out the windows quickly turning opaque.
“What’s wrong, mommy?”
“Just the phone not working. What do you say, ready to walk home?”
“Is it far?”
“Not really. We can make it.”
“All right.”
I bundled up the best I could. As we climbed out of the car, the wind hit us like a fist. The cold was worse than I imagined, certainly worse than anything I have ever felt in North Carolina. I looked toward the street, but I could see nothing moving. No cars or plows or police or fire or anything. Snow-driven wind stung my cheeks. I held on to Emily’s backpack, as I thought she might get blown away.
“Come on,” I said.
Ten steps later, a whiteout struck. I was unable to see more than a few feet. Without lights or buildings or anything, I was totally lost. It was worse than fog because I was cold and quickly getting colder. I glanced back and saw our footprints rapidly filling with drifting snow, disappearing. Fear, absolute terror, rushed through me. In minutes, Emily and I would be cut off from everything, even our vehicle. We would never make it home.
I remembered reading about a blizzard in the nineteenth century in Montana. The wind and snow came on so fast the children in the schoolhouse were dismissed. Most made it home, but some froze to death in the snow, scant yards from their cabins and houses. When I read the story, I thought it was made up. Who couldn’t find a house forty yards away? Now, now as I faced frigid, hammering snow, I realized how it had happened. Emily and I were those kids. We were going to die.
“CAR!” I yelled in Emily’s ear and turned her back the way we had come. I followed the footprints until they disappeared. Head down, I plowed on. I almost banged into the car before I saw it. I shoved Emily into the back seat, and I joined her. She was crying, tears running down her cheeks. I wrapped her inside my coat, and I hugged her, sharing our body heat.
“It’s all right,” I said. “It’s all right. We will have to wait till the wind stops. Then, we’ll go home.”
“Are we going to die?”
“No, no, no one is going to die. We’re in a city. We simply have to keep warm until the snow goes away. Then, we can leave. It will be fine. We’re not hungry. If we get thirsty, we’ll eat snow.”
“Eat snow?”
“Snow is just frozen water. It will keep us hydrated.”
“Oh, yeah.”
I pulled out my phone and tried 911 again.
Busy.
There were too many emergencies happening. Two people in a stalled vehicle were no match for old people stuck in a dark house with no heat or light. I understood. I didn’t like it, but I understood.
“Hey, I think I might have a candy bar in my briefcase. Want it?”
Emily nodded. “You have to eat some too.”
“I will.”
I rummaged through my briefcase. In one pocket, I did find a Snickers.
“Ah ha! Here it is.”
I handed the candy to Emily, but not before I pulled off the black card…Codrin’s card. I stared at it a moment. Would he answer? If he did, was there anything he could do? I pictured him with those dark eyes and powerful shoulders. If he was Dracula…no, he wasn’t. Perhaps, just perhaps, he might know someone who knew someone who might be able to take us home. In all probability, there would be nothing he could do. Yet, it was worth a try. He might have a friend in the police department, someone who could send a plow or something.
Codrin answered on the second ring. “Hello?”
“Codrin, it’s Jasmine. Isn’t this some kind of storm?”
“One of the worst I’ve ever seen. You have power?”
“That’s just it, I don’t know how the house is doing. At the moment, I’m sitting in my vehicle, which is out of power. We’re parked in a lot somewhere.”
