Chapter 3 - THE ROAD TO DANGER
The snow fell harder as we drove. Emily gripped the steering wheel so tight her knuckles turned white. Her eyes never left the road, but every few seconds she glanced at the rearview mirror, as if expecting to see headlights behind us.
I sat quiet in the passenger seat, still wrapped in blankets. The recording on my watch had stopped, but I couldn’t stop thinking about what I’d heard. Make sure they never arrive.
I didn’t understand everything those words meant. But I knew they were bad.
"Mommy?"
"Yes, Noah?" She didn’t look away from the road.
"Grandma and Daddy… they sound scary."
Emily took a breath. "They are confused, Noah. And when people are confused, they sometimes say things they don’t mean."
But her voice wavered. I knew she didn’t believe what she was saying.
The road was slippery. The car slid slightly as she took a curve. Emily slowed down, her expression growing tighter.
"We have to be careful," she whispered, mostly to herself.
Ahead, the highway stretched white and empty. Snow piled high on both sides. The wind howled, whipping flakes across the road until visibility was almost gone.
Emily turned on the radio. Static filled the car. She turned it off again.
"Not much further," she said, though I wasn’t sure if she was talking to me or to herself.
Then her phone buzzed.
She flinched, glancing at the screen. A text message from Daniel.
*Come back. It’s not safe out there. The roads are terrible. I’m worried about you.*
Emily stared at the words. Then another message appeared.
*Please, Emily. Don’t do this. We can work it out. I love you.*
She read them, then slowly typed a reply.
*You lost the right to say that when you locked your son outside. Stay away from us.*
She hit send, then immediately turned off the phone and dropped it into her bag.
"We can’t talk to him right now," she told me. "Not until we know more."
I nodded, though I didn’t fully understand.
Minutes passed. The highway was silent except for the hum of the engine and the wind. Then, far behind us, I saw something.
Headlights.
Bright and steady, cutting through the storm.
"Mommy?"
"I see them," she said quietly.
The car behind us was gaining speed. Fast.
Emily pressed down on the gas. Our car surged forward, but the road was slippery. The other car was catching up.
"It’s Daddy?" I asked.
Emily didn’t answer. She watched the mirror, her face pale.
The headlights grew closer. Then, suddenly, the car pulled alongside us.
Through the swirling snow, I could see the driver. It wasn’t Daniel.
It was a stranger. A man in a dark coat, his face hard and unsmiling.
May you like
He turned his head and looked straight at us.
Then he swerved.
