The Ice Cellar

Chapter 3 The Freezing Hell

The converter settled into a steady hum. Orange light pulsed through the grid, and the air around it began to warm.

My useless skill worked.

My phone would not stop buzzing. The villa chat had collapsed into panic.

"The windows! The villa's panoramic windows just shattered! The wind is tearing through everything!"

"THE GENERATOR IS FROZEN SOLID! THE FIREWOOD WON'T EVEN CATCH!"

Derrick posted, "Stay calm! Huddle together and use the emergency blankets!"

Lia followed. "The protein bars are frozen. We can't bite them. I tried to duplicate more blankets, but the machine is dead."

Caroline posted a selfie. Her face was pale and her lips had gone blue. Behind her, snow blew through the villa lounge and broken glass covered the marble floor.

"Enjoying the luxury accommodations. Five stars. Would not recommend."

I laughed once despite myself.

The converter kept pushing out heat. When the cellar reached 77 degrees, I stripped off my outer layers.

While everyone else on the bus fought over the prize money, I had used my admin access to requisition three non-essential items.

The game delivered an electric hot plate, a small cast-iron skillet, and one vacuum-sealed filet mignon with me.

The hot plate glowed red as soon as I plugged it in. Butter hissed in the skillet, followed by the steak. Within minutes, the cellar smelled of seared meat.

I opened a bottle of cabernet sauvignon while the steak cooked. I skipped the glass.

I sat on a dry patch of floor with my back against the warm wall. The chat kept buzzing beside me.

"Someone has frostbite already!"

"We're going to die in here!"

"DERRICK, DO SOMETHING!"

I cut into the steak. It was medium-rare, exactly how I liked it. Derrick had sent me away to freeze, and now his luxury villa could not keep out the wind.

By the time I finished eating, the feeling had returned to my fingers. I wiped the skillet clean, set my phone against the wine bottle, and opened the camera.