A Winter of Promises

Chapter 3

Evie Harper grasped the sides of her mug, her trembling hands barely letting any heat penetrate. The soft glow from the fireplace failed to catch the cold lump that was forming in her chest. Daniel and Jack had been gone for what felt like an eternity, but she knew it had just been minutes.

Color books were scattered across the floor of her daughter's room; she was lying in bed, thank goodness, excited enough about their sledding plan to offset the thinly veiled panic that seemed to beset her.

Evie couldn't drag her eyes from the window. Outside, the snow had eased into a soft flurry, but the footprints Daniel and Jack followed were set into the white canvas as if by deliberate markers. A little too deliberate. Whoever had been out there wanted to leave a message, and Evie didn't doubt for one moment who that somebody was.

It was as quiet as could be inside the cabin, except for the crackling of the fire issuing from it. She stood, not one moment longer able to be still. Her legs took her forward, toward the front door, to assure herself again it was locked. As her fingers grazed over the chain, a shadow—no more than that—actually flickered outside the cabin, just out of clear view.

It caught in her throat, and she straightened. Slowly, she turned toward the frosted window. For a moment, there was nothing. Only the reflected room behind her, a paler shimmer of snow falling through moonlight. Then she saw its movement.

A face.

Evie took a backward step as her heartbeat quickened. The figure pressed closer to the glass, breathing on the panes so fog swirled around. She could not recognize any features, but her intent came through.

"Lily." she whispered, shaking.

She sprinted down the hall, her socked feet sliding across the wood floor. The door to Lily's room was ajar, and she pushed it open, a wave of relief washing over her at the sight of her daughter curled under the blankets.

Evie stepped inside and closed the door behind her, locking it with shaking fingers. She leaned against the wood, trying to steady her breathing.

This wasn't happening. Not here. Not in Snow Haven.

Outside, Daniel and Jack were at the edge of the woods, the flashes of their flashlights cutting through the dark. The tracks they had been following just vanished—as if this person just disappeared.

"This isn't right." Jack muttered. His breath misted in the frigid air. "Nobody just disappears.”

“They didn't disappear." Daniel snarled, his teeth clenched. "They circled around. They wanted to distract us away from the cabin."

Jack swore softly, already wheeling back toward the house. "We have to go back. Now."

Daniel didn't need telling twice. The two men ran into a trot, their boots chomping through the snow as they plodded back through their earlier footprints.

Inside the cabin, Evie sat on the edge of Lily's bed, her hand on her daughter's blanket-covered back. Lily stirred but didn't awaken. Her mind began to spiral out of control, conjuring up worst-case scenarios.

Greg. It had to be him. Who else would go to such an extreme to rattle her?

A faint creak echoed through the house. Evie stiffened, ears straining for any sound.

Another creak. Closer this time.

She lay in bed, her heart thundering in her chest, rising to a slow, quiet move to the door. She pressed her ear against the wood and held her breath.

A turning doorknob arrested her breath. It wasn't the front door—she would have heard the locks. It was one of the other rooms.

Evie grasped the nearest thing—a small, delicate, wooden jewelry box that had been on Lily's dresser—and clutched it tightly to herself. Her heart was racing in her chest, and with that, she turned the lock and pulled the door open far enough to peek out into the hall.

Firelight danced across the living room, but the shadows seemed to twist and reach in ways that were just a little bit unnatural. She stepped out into the hall, her bare feet making no sound on the wood floor.

A figure loomed near the front door, its back to her. Evie's grip on the jewelry box tightened.

"Who are you?" she demanded, voice steady.

The figure froze, then slowly turned.

"Evie, it's me."

Daniel's voice was soft and soothing; his face a mask of complete tranquility. He moved forward, one hand raised as if in a soothing gesture.

Evie's knees all but buckled with the wash of relief. She lowered the now useless jewelry box, breathing raggedly.

"Daniel." she whispered low. "There was someone outside. They were watching through the window."

"I know." he said, his voice solid. "We found their tracks, but they went on some wild goose chase. Jack's out back, making a perimeter check."

Evie nodded, her hands still shaking. "Lily—she's in her room. She doesn't know anything."

"Good." Daniel said. "Let's keep it that way."

He glared towards the window, his jaw muscles clenching. "Evie, I want you to tell me something honestly. You don't think this had anything to do with Greg, do you?"

"I don't know who else it could be." she said. "He's the only one with motive to... to do this."

Daniel's face went black as night. "If it's him, he won't get far. Jack and I will make sure of that."

A shrill knock came at the door, running jitters through them. Daniel made a motion with his head for Evie to retreat while he came closer, peering out the peephole.

"It's Jack." he said, unlocking the door and letting him in.

Jack stamped inside, brushing snow off his coat. "Whoever it was, they're gone now. But they left something behind."

He held out a small object wrapped in plastic. It was a note, words scrawled in handwriting that was altogether too familiar and made Evie's stomach turn.

“Soon. You can't hide forever.”

The color fled Evie's face, and she fell back onto the couch, eyes stuck on the note as if it would go off like a bomb at any moment.

Jack placed the note on the coffee table, his face deadpan. "We have to take it to the sheriff."

"No." Evie said in a hurry and firmly. "It'll just get worse if we do that. Greg'll manage somehow to turn it—to make me appear as the bad guy."

"You cannot face that alone, Evie." Daniel said more persuasively.

"I've not asked to face something myself alone." she returned hotly, "but neither would I give Greg reason to act and believe he's fought so hard for some good."

Daniel knelt in front of her and, with a very low and resolved voice, said, "Then let us help you. You no longer have to fight him on your own."

There was dead silence for some seconds before she nodded; her eyes flashed with unshed tears.

"Okay." she whispered. "Only for Lily, because I just will not be able to take it when he takes her away from me."

Daniel laid a comforting hand on her knee. "He won't. Not while we're around."

Outside, the snow fell, obscuring the tracks that led from the cabin. But out further yet, a form at the edge of the trees stood and watched the face of the cabin with unblinking eyes.