âIs there anything else on the radio?â Audrey politely asked from the rear seat.
Her father laughed, âMy little pumpkin canât handle a bit of classical now and then.â
Rachel backed her sister, âOh come on Dad, weâve had your choice for the last twenty miles, in fact longer than that, even before we got to the snow line.â
Jacquelyn looked through the glove compartment and found a C D, âHow does, Best of Cher, suit everybody?â
Rachel was quickest, âYes that will do, anything but slay ride.â
The road wound slowly up the hill; the forest on the left and the valley to the right looked a picture in the late autumnal snow.
Albert Beamish had been married to his second wife for just three months, they and his two daughters, Rachel eighteen and Audrey nineteen, his girls from his first marriage had decided on a family bonding weekend to the hills, they had managed to get, well what looked like from the pictures, a very nice holiday home, a weekend let, It was up in the hills, they had brought plenty of wine, some nice easy to cook food and were just going to spend a few days, as Rachel would put it, chilling out.
Jacquelyn sounded excited as she squealed, âLook Itâs snowing again.â
Albert patted her leg, âHow old are you three or thirty three.â
From the rear seat Rachel tapped him on the head; âDonât be so horrid just because youâve gone fifty, an old fuddy duddy like you should think himself very lucky to have three beautiful women with him, I really donât see what Jacque saw in you.â
Albert snorted, âMoney, which, with you two beautiful women, is running out fast.â
Their laughter was cut short as the back end of the car slid in the now heavily falling snow, âWhoops;â Albert laughed trying to reassure the women, as the snow swirled around the car.
Albert looked down to turn on the headlights, there was a loud bump and he swerved to the right, the car slid in to the water ditch at the side of the road and the engine cut out.
âChrist what was thatâ? Albert cursed as he struggled out the door, the women looked at each other as Albert walked around in the snow, a few minutes later he opened the door, âWe hit a deer, a big deer, the trouble is I donât think itâs dead, our problem is the car head light is bust fortunately thatâs the only damage, the rest of the car looks alright.â
Suddenly there were voices, menâs voices shouting, the language was not what the family was used to.
Albert swung round, the women heard him ask, âCan I help you gentlemen?â
A loud gruff voice yelled, âAre the fuckin dude that hit my deer?â
Albert was taken back, âYour deer, I thought they were wild up here and yes it ran in to my car, and can you keep the language down as there are ladies present.â
âI donât care if the Queen of fuckin Shebaâs here, I been tracking that deer for the last three hours and its antlers were mine, now you and your fucking city motor have smashed them.â Just then a shot made everybody jump as another man put the quivering animal out of its misery.
He turned to the two arguing men, âCâmon Jeth the critters dead, no point in getting all pissy with the city folk, them just as dumb as this dead fuckin deer.â
The women hadnât said anything, Jacquelyn had told the two girls just to keep quite but that all changed when three unshaven filthy faces pressed against the windows, Albert moved them away, it was then that the girls noticed they all had hand guns as well as hunting rifles.
Albert got back in the car and started it, put it in gear but all that happened was the wheels just spun, they could see the three men watching, then, out of no-where another set of headlights lit the scene.
Albert stopped the car rives and just sat, three other men jumped out a battered old four by four truck. First they looked at the dead deer, then they all stood talking until one headed for the car, Albert lowered the window about two inches, the man spat tobacco out and said, âYou folk gonna camp there for the night or wanna tow, whereâs yah business?â
Albert showed him the agents sheet, he laughed, âYou gonna need a tow, with this snow you wonât get nowhere in this pansy wagon, weâll take you, ladies hold on to your beavers.â
He turned away and shouted, âLe-Roy, Pip, put a chain on the city folks fancy motor, canât see three pretty beavers freezin out here.â He grinned back at them over his shoulder, Jacquelyn felt uneasy she didnât like the smirk on his face.
With the car doors locked, the family waited, first they put the deer in the back of the truck then a chain to the car, before they all piled in, the family braced it self, two hefty jerks and the car rolled free. For about twenty miles Albert and Jacquelyn had to endure the grinning faces of the three men they had first met as they stared at them from the back window of the truck.
To every-bodies surprise, their truck pulled them in to the drive of the house; one man jumped out and uncoupled the chain and next thing the taillights of the truck just disappeared in to the forest. The four of them just sat and looked at each other until Audrey quietly said, âI think we should go in before we freeze to death.â
The house was quite well fitted out, not exactly mod cons but nice and homely all beamed out, log cabin style. They soon had a log fire going in the parlour and candles lit everywhere, and to warm themselves three bottle of wine were quickly polished off.
They had a big lunch on the way so some cheese and bread was enough to complement the fourth bottle; Albert had lit a fire in his bedroom, commenting on the big old rocking chair in there. The girls had small but nice rooms each and he lit a fire in both of theirs.
They all changed in to some comfortable nightclothes, Albert in T-shirt and shorts and dressing gown. Jacquelyn in a black high necked pyjama set with gown and the two girls in long T-shirts and thick knee length white socks with their matching dressing gowns so their they sat there, cosy, fed, warm, chatting noisily a bit worse for wine, especially Rachel, so nobody was surprised when she was the first to need her bed.
As she went to her room Audrey heard her say, âDam the fires low and thereâs no more logs, oh well.â
The other three finished the fourth and uncorked a fifth, Jacquelyn was giggling with laughter as Albert and Audrey joked with each other, Audrey was telling Jacquelyn lots of silly things about how she imaged her father got his considerable wealth, as he never told anyone, was it from bank robbery or was he a porn magnet because he certainly wasnât bright enough to have earned it.
Suddenly Audrey stopped the funning and said, âDid you hear that?â
Nether Albert or Jacquelyn heard anything, âWhat was it?â
Audrey got up and looked out of the window, âIt sounded like a animal cry or a shout I canât be sure.â
Albert said, âHow could you hear anything with the wind in the trees.
Then Jacquelyn said, âNo, listen there are voices, and Iâm sure it sounds like men but I did hear a animal scream, are they hunting at this time of night?â
Albert said, âDonât be ridiculous of course they wouldnât hunt in this weather, any-way what is there to hunt round here at this hour, come and sit down your wines getting warm.â
Audrey came away from the window, âYes your right itâs the wind playing tricks, pour the last of the wine, Iâll check on Rach.â
Audrey slid her slippers on and went through the corridor to the little room on the end, she peered in, the bed was empty, the fire had gone out and the big window was open, Audrey went to the window, sure enough she could just see the out-line of footprints under the still falling snow.
Audrey called but she knew it was a waste of time in this wind, she stamped her foot and thought, that stupid girl has gone for logs, oh well better find her before father goes bananas.
She climbed over the low window ledge, she could see the log shed, just down the side of the house and over to the left and there was a light on.
By pushing herself close to the house wall she kept out of the snow, just a quick dash across and she would be at the shed, she made for the side first, there she could slide round under the roof covering to the shed door, she counted three and took off.
Audrey made it in six long strides, she lent against the wall thinking, this is ridiculous, out here in night-clothes in the middle of a snow storm, I will brain Rachel, suddenly through the wind she heard a muffled squeal then menâs laughter, she looked around, yes, there was a crack of light to her left, she made her way to it.