Snow Lodge
Chapter 27
Brian opened the door and stepped outside into the pristine snow. Everything was covered in a thick layer of white, and it made everything seem to sparkle.
He stepped off of the porch and into the snow, immediately sinking down to over his ankles. He made his way over to the small lean-to at the side of the house, which held extra firewood and all the tools. He figured he was going to need a shovel to get his car out. Especially since it seemed that with every step he took, he sank deeper into the snow.
With some effort, he managed to force the door open enough to get inside, and he quickly found a shovel. He then made his way back over to the pile of snow that was his truck.
It took almost an hour for Brian to move enough snow away from the bottom of the car so he could see the wheels. Another 20 minutes revealed the doors. He tried to unlock the car, and was upset to find that the locks were iced shut, so he made his way back over to the cabin, to go and get some boiling water.
He opened the door to the cabin, and immediately went to check on AJ. He was still laying where Brian had left him; his breathing seemingly more laboured than before. Every breath seemed to be slow and shallow, and was accompanied with the awful rattling sound. Brian ran back into the bedroom and found the thermometer, and put it into AJ's mouth.
Whilst he waited for the reading, he quickly went and put the kettle on for hot water. Heading back to AJ, he kneeled down beside him and gently removed the thermometer. He checked the reading and was not surprised to see that his temperature had risen again, although it was nowhere near the dangerously high temperatures it had been at before. Still, Brian knew that there was no time to waste, and as soon as he heard the kettle boil, he grabbed it and took it outside.
Very carefully, he poured some of the water over the lock, melting the ice that had formed there. This time, when he tried the lock, it opened.
Brian breathed a sigh of relief, and yanked on the door. The door itself was also frozen, and was stuck to the chassis of the car, but it came free with some none so gentle persuasion.
Brian jumped in the truck and put his key in the ignition, to get the engine warmed and the windows de-iced. His heart was in his throat as he heard the engine protesting it was ticking over, but not firing. After a minute or so of trying, it finally fired, and Brian almost cried in relief as he realised that he was nearly ready to leave.
He managed to open the back door of his truck, and moved everything off of the back seat, so that he could lay AJ on it, before heading back into the house.
