Montana Winter

I stood at the window watching fat snowflakes fall in lazy circles. A cold blast of air bit through my sweater as the back door closed.

“The report says it’s going to be a big one,” I said.

“I heard,” Henry’s deep voice replied as he wrapped his arms around my waist and rested his chin on my head. “I fed the horses so they should be good until tonight.”

“It’s so pretty,” I whispered, leaning back in his arms.

“It may be pretty now, Ellie, but in a few hours, it’s going to be a mess.” He squeezed me tighter. “We should be fine. The generator’s gassed up, we’ve got more firewood than we’ll need and, if I’m not mistaken, someone’s been baking.”

I spun in his arms and kissed his chin. “Chocolate muffins.” I grabbed his hand. “Come on. They’re on the table.”

“You’re such a good little housewife.”

“Watch it,” I laughed, pulling him towards the kitchen.

As the day progressed, I watched the fat flakes turn to icy bullets that obliterated the world around us. The wind shook the windows in their frames as the snow piled up. Never, in the four months since I’d moved with my new husband to his home in Montana, had I felt so isolated. The three miles to the nearest neighbor seemed as far away as my family in San Diego.

When morning turned to afternoon, Henry started to put on his snow gear.

“You’re going out in this?”

“I have to check on the horses,” he said, shrugging into his coat.

“I’ll come with you.”

He walked over and put his hands on my shoulders. “Look, hon, it’s blowing at almost 50 miles an hour and, with the wind chill, we’re looking at temps way below zero. I won’t be long.”

“I just…I would just feel better if I knew you weren’t out there all alone.”

“I’ll be fine. It’s nothing I haven’t done before.”

“I know,” I said, fiddling with his coat buttons. “But really, wouldn’t it be faster if I helped?”

“I don’t know…”

“Look. Didn’t you say you tied a rope from the barn to the house?”

“Well, yeah, but…”

“So I’ll hold on to the rope.” I looked into his eyes. “If I don’t go with you, I'm just going to worry. Besides,” I smiled suggestively, “the sooner we get back, the sooner we can go to bed,” I ran my finger down his chest and gave him a lingering kiss, “and conserve heat.”

Henry sighed in defeat. “Fine.” I grinned and rushed to the back door to pull on my snow gear. “But you’ve got to hold on to the rope, Ellie. The visibility is zero and if you get turned around, you could wander off and freeze to death without ever finding the house.”

“I’m not an idiot, love.”

“I know.” He frowned as he watched me zip my coat and reach for my hat and gloves.

“Don’t be such a worrywart,” I teased as I opened the door. The blast of wind froze the smile off my face. It cut through my coat with the ruthlessness of a machete. “Good God!”

“Change your mind?”

“Not a chance. But, let’s hurry, okay?”

“Step in my footprints. It’ll make the going easier.”

I followed Henry out from under the shelter of the porch, my hand clutching the rope tied to the railing. I pushed my way through the snow. By the third step, Henry’s form was a vague shadow in a world blinded by white. I blinked my eyes, squinting through the snow as I trudged along after him to the barn. The shadow that was Henry was soon devoured by the snowy beast. Alone, with only a rope to guide me, I tucked my head down and continued, putting one foot in front of another into tracks that were already being obliterated by the wind.

With a gust that blew the hood off my head, the storm raged, tugging me off balance. Releasing the rope, I struggled to regain my footing, falling sideways into a snowy drift. Spitting snow out of my mouth and wiping it from my eyes, I staggered to my feet, reaching out to grab the rope.

My gloved fingers slipped through air.

Don’t panic. The rope is there. You know the rope is there. Carefully, not moving from my place next to the drift, I stretched my arms to either side, waving them, searching blindly for the rope. The wind bullied my body, pushing and shoving, trying to knock me off my feet. Don’t panic. Don’t panic.

I stood still, trying to get my bearings. “Henry!” The wind swept his name from my lips.

Stay still. Don’t move. I stood motionless, my eyes searching through the blinding snow. I knew Henry would know something was wrong when I didn’t follow him into the barn.

Warmth seeped from my body, replaced by a chill that sank into my bones. My muscles quivered with the temptation to move, to run, to get back to the house. But I knew that any step could be in the wrong direction. Stay still.

I stood there as heavy lethargy seeped into my body. The sting of the icy wind turned into a caress and the roar of the storm into a lullaby.

A shadow appeared to my left like a mirage. “Ellie! Ellie!” I could hear the panic in his voice.

“He-ee-en,” my teeth chattered. I forced his name past my frozen lips. “He-e-en-ry!”

I felt his arms grab me and envelop me in a bear hug. “Oh God, sweetheart. I was so worried! ”

“Tired. So-o-o tired.”

He lifted me in his strong arms and carried me to the blessed warmth of the house. Setting me on my feet, he immediately started undressing me. “Hold on, babe. I’m going to warm you up. When you didn't show up at the barn, I thought you'd gone back to the house. I came back here and -" Cursing, he scooped me into his arms and carried me to the bedroom. Tucking me under the blankets, he stripped down and joined me holding me tightly as his warmth sent needles into my skin.

"Am I going to be okay?" I slurred sleepily.

"You will," he hugged me tight. "I promise." I heard him dial his cell phone as I drifted off.

This was a piece of fiction inspired by this week's writing prompt at The Red Dress Club: "imagine you are trapped alone or with others at a single place during a ginormous blizzard or its aftermath". Since I have pretty much no experience with blizzards, I thought I'd tell a story instead. Soooo....what did you think?

Also, because this is really a red-letter day, I'm guest blogging at Taming Insanity. (How cool is that?!)Come on over and bring a little Mandyland love while I share the "method" to my cooking madness. You may end up visiting for a while. KLZ is a blogger who makes me laugh so hard, I'm literally in tears.