Page 10 of Primal Snow

Chapter 5

Just as I stand, I rush out of the room on trembling legs. Nobody is paying any attention even as I slam the patio door shut behind me, the sound echoing in the smothering stillness of the night. The icy air claws at my skin, but I’m relieved to see Chase standing by the steaming hot tub.

He looks up, his brow furrowing when he sees my face. “What’s wrong?” he asks, stepping toward me.

“There’s something out there,” I say, my voice trembling. “I saw… I don’t know. A footprint. It was huge, Chase. Like, not human-huge.”

He stares at me for a moment, then letsout a laugh. Not a mocking one, but the kind you use to calm someone down. “Emma, you’ve been drinking.”

“I’m not drunk,” I snap, crossing my arms. My fingers dig into my sweater sleeves as I glance toward the dark forest beyond the cabin. “It was real. You have to believe me. I was changing and this…thingwas spying on me!”

“Okay, okay. Babe, I believe you.” He runs his hands up and down my arms, warming me up, but my naked legs shake violently, my bare feet freezing on the icy wooden floor. “Want me to check it out?”

“No!” The word flies out before I can stop it. The thought of him wandering into the dark, with whatever made that footprint lurking nearby, is unbearable.

“Alright,” he says slowly, then tilts his head, a playful glint in his eye. “How about we check it out together? Safety in numbers.”

I hesitate, torn between wanting to hide in the cabin and needing to prove I’m not crazy. “Fine,” I mutter.

“But you need to put something more on.” He frowns as he notices my legs turning blue.

I nod, and we head back inside. He walks with me to our bedroom where I put on a pair of fresh sweats while he grabs towels for us—clearly not over the hot tub scenario.

“What the hell are you two up to?” Jay asks when we move back to the main room.

“Nothing. We were about to jump in the hot tub, but Em thought she saw something.”

I shake my head. “I know what I saw!” I slide my feetinto my Uggs and toss on a jacket, determined to show him the proof.

Chase grabs a flashlight, and we set off around the cabin. The snow crunches beneath our boots, the cold biting through my layers. The beam of light cuts through the impossible darkness, illuminating the pristine snow as we round the corner to where the footprint should be, and my heart sinks.

It’s gone.

There’s no sign of it, no indent, nothing to confirm I wasn’t imagining things.

“Well?” Chase says, sweeping the light over the area under the bedroom’s window. “Where is it?”

“It was here,” I insist, my voice small. “I saw it, Chase. I swear.”

He lowers the flashlight and pulls me close, his arms warm and steady. “Hey, I believe youthinkyou saw something,” he says softly, but I can hear the teasing in his tone. “But maybe you just had one too many tequila shots, hm?” He lets out a little chuckle. “Or maybe you’ve got snow monsters on the brain?”

I pull back, glaring at him. “I’m not insane.”

“You’re not,” he agrees, pressing a kiss to my forehead. “But you’re overthinking things. It’s snow, Emma. It probably just drifted funny or something.”

I want to argue, but the evidence—or lack of it—is against me. Maybe it all happened only in my head. Or maybe the snow really did cover it up. Either way, the longer I stand here, the sillier I feel.

“Okay,” I say finally, gaslighting myself. “Perhaps itwas tequila.”

Chase nods, taking my hand. “Now that’s the spirit. Let’s get in the tub before we freeze out here.”

Back on the patio, the hot tub is heated up nicely, steaming in full force. Chase hands me one of the beers, then quickly pulls it back. “Hmm, maybe not.”

“Ugh, I’m notdrunk. Give me that!” I yank it out of his hand and take a big gulp. Frankly, I don’t even feel tipsy anymore. The whole situation spooked me enough to sober me up.

“You feeling okay now?” he asks, studying me carefully.

“Sure,” I lie, though the uneasy feeling still lingers at the back of my mind.

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