Pulling her foot up, she placed the strip against her sole and realized she had no way to hold it there. God, please help me! Please! Brook remained motionless, crying silent tears. Her thoughts cleared a little and she looked down at the shirt she was wearing. An idea came to her. She cut a couple of narrow strips from the shirt, pulled the upholstery over her foot and tied it on near her toes and around her ankle. It works!
She cut more strips from the shirt and then worked vigorously to obtain a second piece of upholstery. Halfway through, the tiny scissors broke with a snap. No, no, no! Brook sobbed in frustration, near defeat. But her will to survive was strong, and she remembered that she had a nail file in her purse. Fumbling through the bag with cold fingers, she found the file and began to saw at the fabric. It took even longer than the small scissors had, but she eventually had her second ‘shoe’. Batting stuck to her hand and she slapped it away before stopping abruptly. Batting! Stuffing! I can use this for cushioning. She quickly removed the first ‘shoe’, added batting, and then tied it on again, repeating the steps for her other foot. Brook was elated; at least one of her problems was solved. She was partly clothed and now had provided a couple of layers of insulation between her flesh and the cold ground. Thrusting a fist skyward in a gesture of triumph, she shouted, “Yes!” Immediately, she slapped her hand over her mouth, afraid her captors might be around to hear her.
The car rocked gently, and Brook froze until it settled once more. Staring out the windshield at the blackness, she wondered how she would find her way out of this predicament. The dome light flickered, drawing her attention to her vulnerability. She felt exposed and knew she couldn't afford the luxury of lingering. Her sense of self-preservation urged her to leave the car as soon as possible.
Climbing down from the vehicle, Brook winced as her feet touched the ground. Still, the ‘shoes’ were a vast improvement over walking barefoot. She gritted her teeth against the pain, anxious to get moving. It was imperative that she find help. She looked in all directions, trying to pierce the darkness. The surrounding peaks were black jagged shadows against the charcoal gray of the night sky, the moon hidden behind clouds. The road should be up, but so was the danger that Jase would find her. Knowing how easy it would be to get lost in the forest, she felt she had no choice but to make her way down the slope. She would hide until daylight and then climb to the road. Even then, she would have to be wary. They might come looking for her. But at least she knew the road led somewhere. All she had to do was survive one more night and then she could find help. But, it was so cold.
Finally, with reservations, she abandoned the car. Senses on high alert, she took in her surroundings. It was impossible to see much in the thick darkness, and she concentrated on listening. Subtle rustlings filled the night with furtive sound. Her ears also detected trickling water nearby, and she turned in that direction. Taking small steps and testing the ground before her, she gingerly descended. Using sound to guide her, Brook eventually found the stream. Careful as she was, she still scraped her bare legs on unseen branches and brambles and stubbed her toes on half-buried rocks. Reaching the bank, she fell to her knees and drank deeply from the icy water until her stomach rebelled. Twisting to the side, she vomited. Head hung, she remained on her hands and knees until her stomach quieted. Cautioning herself to take it slowly, she drank again, pausing for a few minutes after each swallow for her stomach to settle. Eventually, her thirst was sated, but her hands burned from the cold water. She clasped her palms and stuck them between her legs, holding them there for a several minutes. When they had warmed slightly, she probed the darkness, trying to choose her next course of action, but she couldn't see well enough to make an educated decision. She finally determined to follow the small rivulet as it babbled along. She'd put distance between the crash site and herself. She'd hide. Then, in the morning, she'd decide whether it was safe to return to the site and make her way to the road.
Cloud cover broke away from the moon’s face, granting her a weak illumination. She still relied heavily on the sound of the stream to guide her steps. Praying for help, she wandered away from the road and deeper into the forest.
Time stretched; moments became surreal and dreamlike. The wind had died down, but the cold still nipped at her skin like an invisible wolf. Her legs felt heavy and Brook stumbled in weariness. She sat on a downed tree to retie one of her foot coverings, leaned forward, and almost fell on her face as dizziness overcame her. Cradling her head until the episode passed, she retied the strip around her foot. It broke in her hands and she sat holding the pieces, overwhelmed by misery. She just couldn’t bring herself to take one more step on her aching and swollen feet. To move one more inch with her sore and ravaged body.
Kneeling beside the fallen tree, she felt for a place that would provide some respite from the cold. Squeezing into a slight gap near the forest floor, she nestled under the tree and pulled leaves and twigs over her body. She left her wayward ‘shoe’ flopping from her foot and curled up around her bag, holding it close to her chest as shivers racked her body. Her teeth chattered so hard against each other that they ached. She wondered how long a body could endure these temperatures with next to no clothing. Tomorrow, I will find help. Repeating these words over and over, Brook’s thoughts drifted away, and finally, she slept. Sometime during the night, clouds rolled over the moon, thrusting the landscape into blackness. A light snow began to fall.
Chapter 14
After a hurried breakfast, Lance stepped from his cabin into a frosty world of white and looked up at the sky. Metallic gray clouds hung like ghosts overhead, promising more snow. He made his way to the goat shed and released Gilbert and Belinda for their last day of freedom, at least for a while. He wondered if he should keep them penned today, but he pushed his doubts aside and got busy on his fence project.
The hours passed quickly and the snow began to fall again. He cursed the weather; he needed sunshine to activate his fence. His mood darkened and he vowed to go hunting later, if he could pick up the trail. Stupid lion in heat, he thought. She’ll attract males and before you know it, no animal in the area will be safe. Scolding himself for his procrastination on the fence project and well aware there was no way he’d complete the task today, he decided he had best put the goats in the shed early and gear up for a hunt. He couldn’t shake his uneasy feeling.
Chapter 15
Brook’s eyes opened to whiteness. The ground and trees appeared to have been sprinkled with powdered sugar. Any other time it would have been beautiful; now it was just cold and miserable. She pushed away her covering of leaves and sat up, riding out a violent spate of shivers. She had spent a miserable night fading in and out of terrifying dreams, hauled from sleep repeatedly by pain and cold. At one point, she had heard a loud snuffling close by and feared it was a bear, or worse. She had held very still, and whatever it was moved away. It was even harder to sleep after that.
Glancing down, she was shocked by the condition of her feet. They were swollen to nearly twice their normal size and the pain was intense. Already, ominous possibilities hung over her; frightening words like 'gangrene' and 'frostbite' echoed in her head. Removing her makeshift foot coverings, she noticed blood had soaked through in many places and the batting had stuck to the wounds. She gently pried away the padding, careful to save as much as possible, and inspected the soles of her feet. Covered in cuts, some superficial and some deep, they presented a chilling sight. Cradling her feet in her hands, she wept as she massaged them, trying to restore their circulation and prodding the cuts to remove debris. She worked on them until she couldn't take any more.