Alice loved sitting by the fireplace at night, reading. Romance was her genre of choice. She also enjoyed being out in the woods, especially now, during the first winter snow.

Her father had passed on last year. This was be the first year she could remember, without their annual first snow walk.

Her childhood home had a fireplace. Her family used to sit and read to each other in front of the fire. Wood was never in short supply. They hadn't tackled cutting down a whole tree but had enjoyed spitting logs together.

Today was the first snow. She walked in the woods alone, memories of her father in the forefront of her mind.

She had stayed until sunset, before walking the mile through semi-wilderness to her cabin, wanting to savor every minute.

Alice felt as though there was someone following her the last quarter of a mile and picked up her pace. She didn't see anyone, but it was getting dark.

As she walked across her two acres to the cabin, she was sure someone was behind her. She tried as best she could to sprint through the accumulating snow.

She fumbled for the keys. No luck.

She saw him now, just one hundred yards from the door she couldn't open.

Panicked, she ran across the backyard and hid behind her biggest tree.

She could hear his boots on the fresh snow.

As he ...

rounded the tree ...

Alice swung ...

the ax ...




He-he-he, he- he- he