This night couldn’t possibly get any worse… “Famous last words,” I whisper to myself. It’s freezing. None of us had time to grab a jacket on our way out of the house. Especially not with people shooting at us. I have no idea if my wife was able to call 911, but it looks like she evaded those two guys for the time being. The fact that I caused a distraction and pointed them in my own direction is what I would call  going the extra mile. She is my everything. 

I crouch behind the barn and see their flashlights sweep over the snowy landscape looking for me.  Unfortunately, this leaves me at a fork in the road. What is my next step? I can’t stay behind the barn forever. They are coming. 

Suddenly another shot goes off in the house.  I hear the one guy exclaim, “That wasn’t supposed to happen…” and they turn around to run back to the porch. I hope grandpa managed to get his own shotgun out of the safe. If so he is throwing himself under the bus. Look after yourself, old man!

More shouts from the house. I see two figures running towards the cars. One huge and the other clearly injured. The car spins sleet and snow in my general direction as it speeds off towards the main road in the dark. I get a split-second glimpse of a bloody face on the passenger side. It’s my mother-in-law! 

“Find the woman! The first hostage is en route to the safe house. I cannot afford to lose another soldier!” the guy with the shotgun yells. The other jogs into the woods following my wife’s trail.  Oh no… the guy is definitely on the right track. It will not take him long to find her. Military? Same here, pal.  No time to think, I have to move.  The man left on the patio is clearly in the driver’s seat. I prefer not meeting him face to face while unarmed. 

As he goes back into the house- perhaps to tend to the injured soldier?- I jump over the fence behind the barn and into the woods. I have an idea where my wife is headed, but in this weather and low visibility, I honestly don’t know if she will be able to make it there safely. 

My wife is not one to burn her bridges. Even if the other person was completely out of order, she forgives them. But she doesn’t forget. Luckily this will come in handy tonight. The man living on the neighboring farm is called Brad. They used to date when they were much younger but things didn’t work out well for them. Long story.  Not important now. They used to read books in an old oak tree on his property. They even built a little treehouse. Brad even encouraged her to share the treehouse with me when we started dating. I have a strong suspicion that she thought this treehouse could be the light at the end of the tunnel  for us tonight. I hope she makes it there. We haven’t eaten yet so she is running on fumes for sure. As I make my way silently towards the area the tree is in, I hear something. I stop. Listen. I see fresh footprints in the snow. My wife’s. So I was right. Unfortunately, the man is also following her. I see his gigantic footprints as well. I wait a few minutes for movement, but I can’t hear or see anything.  Is he waiting me out, too? The tracks are slowly disappearing under the falling snow. I’m glad I know where I’m going. For him, it’ll be a bit harder to find her. She is a stubborn woman, the cold and rough terrain will not get her down. She likes to joke and say. “It’s my way or the highway.” I really hope that being such a strong-willed woman will help her get to the treehouse. I can’t wait any longer. If she is injured I need to find her as soon as possible. Get going.

I reach the treehouse around 10 minutes later. She isn’t here. Did he catch up with her and take her back to the house? The man on the porch said to find the woman. What else did he give the green light  for? I shudder.   

TO BE CONTINUED

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