Trapped

Using the flashlight batteries for the remote didn't seem like a big deal at the time. However, now that I was driving fifteen miles per hour at midnight in a blizzard because my power went out and my flashlight didn’t work, maybe it wasn’t the brightest idea. I couldn’t help breathing a sigh of relief as the supermarket’s sign glowed in the distance. I crept my car into the parking lot, I couldn’t even tell where the lines were to park. Not that it mattered, it looked like no one was there.

I parked near the front but still had to scurry to get inside as the freezing wind bit at my exposed nose and cheeks. The electric doors slid open to welcome me with a friendly chiming. I stomped off my boots at the entrance. It was quiet tonight. Not too surprising considering the storm outside. Still, something in the air felt wrong. I couldn’t quite figure it out.

The wind picked up and howled loudly. It almost sounded like it would blow the store away. I shook off the funny feeling I had and dashed for the battery aisle. I had to get out of here before I got trapped. Hopefully, the power would be on by tomorrow. I paused a little at that thought. I should probably pick up extra supplies in case it wasn’t. After all, I didn’t want to have to do this again tomorrow.

I noticed an empty cart near the end of the aisle. Probably a leftover from someone too lazy to bring it to the cart return. At least it saved me a trip. I started filling up the cart with packages of Ramen noodles and some canned goods. I thought about grabbing a case of bottled water too, but I noticed the aisle for it was empty. I guess everyone else probably stocked up before the storm hit. Maybe there were some in the back still. 

I pushed my cart to the checkout lane to ask an employee, but no one was there. I waited at the lane a moment, but no one showed up. I guess they probably didn’t have too many employees tonight. They must have been in the back. I certainly wouldn’t expect any customers on a night like this. I left my cart and walked towards the staff area. 

“Hello?” I called from outside the door.

I didn’t hear anything. Maybe they couldn’t hear me over the storm. The wind howled again at that moment. I shook my head and gingerly opened the door. 

“Hello?” I called again. “Sorry if you’re busy, but nobody is out here and I need to head home before the storm picks up. Can someone help me?”

I listened carefully, but all I heard was the wind. Odd. Maybe they were restocking right now? I walked around a few of the aisles, but I didn’t see any employees. I didn’t see anyone. I didn’t even hear anyone. I was getting really creeped out at this point.

No customers, no employees, no anybody. Just me. A chill ran through my body, and it wasn’t from the cold. Screw it. I had some Chinese takeout in my fridge and could live in the dark a couple of days. I dashed down the nearest aisle. I just wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible. 

As I rounded the corner, something on the floor caught my eyes. It took a second for my brain to register what it was. A baby. I nearly fell over trying to stop myself so I wouldn’t step on it. The baby stared up at me with its large eyes. It made a soft gurgling sound but was otherwise quiet. I looked around. Was there someone else here? Why the hell did they just leave their baby on the floor?

“Umm, hello?” I called out. “Is someone here?”

No one answered. I looked down at the baby again. A tiny, pale little thing in a blue onesie. That probably meant it was a boy. A wisp of brownish hair dusted his head. The onesie was decorated with snowflakes and looked like it was made of fleece. Fleece or not, it wasn’t warm enough on a night like this. Shouldn’t he have a hat or jacket or something? And where were his parents? There was no way in hell this thing came out of nowhere. Someone had to put him here. He certainly wasn’t here before. Was he? 

I didn’t have much time to reflect on it. The baby started to cry at that moment. I looked around again. Where were his parents? He started to cry louder as if reading my mind and wondering the same.

“Hey! Your baby’s crying!” I shouted.

I still heard no response. I couldn't just leave him on the floor. I sighed and picked him up. He still cried, but it wasn’t as hard as before. I patted his back gently.

“It’s alright, Buddy,” I said soothingly. “We’ll find your parents, then we’ll both get out of here. Don’t worry.”

I must have wandered around the aisles a dozen times, but I still didn’t see a soul in sight. The baby’s crying had reduced to a soft whimper. How the hell did he even get here? I didn’t remember hearing the door chime. Aside from that, who just abandons their baby in a store? Especially in weather like this!

The wind let out another howl. I glanced through the windows. The snow was so thick it was like watching static on a TV. I could just barely see my car getting buried.

Damn it. If I didn’t hurry, then I’d be trapped here. I couldn’t just leave him here, but I didn’t want to take him with me. What if the parents were somewhere nearby? I wasn’t going to kidnap a baby in a blizzard. What was I going to do though?

The choice was made for me as I heard a loud crash, followed by the sharp pop of an electrical failure. Darkness surrounded me. My heart sank. It would only be so long before the heat from the heater faded and the cold set in. Even without the wind, it was still below freezing tonight. We couldn’t stay here. I’d take the baby to the police station tomorrow and explain, but we couldn’t stay here. I clutched the baby close and dashed for the doors. 

They didn’t move. It made sense. After all, the power was out. I set the baby on the floor gingerly and started tugging at the door. It didn’t budge. I tugged harder. Nothing. Panic filled me now. I tugged at the door violently. My fingers were hurting, the door rattled, but it didn’t budge. Automatic lockdown. We were trapped.

“Fuck!” I cried, kicking the door.

The baby whimpered at my sudden outburst. I picked him up and started to bounce him gently in my arms. Damn it. Damn it all. If this door locked then all of them probably did. We’d have to stay here tonight. I wandered over to the checkout lane and peaked under the counter. It was hollow. Good. It was away from the refrigeration and the door. This was probably our best bet to stay warm.

I felt a small shaking against my chest at that moment. I glanced down. The baby was shivering. It was dark, but I could see his lips had a very faint blue tint to them. I made a disgusted noise. Who the hell dresses a baby like this to go out in a blizzard? Poor thing couldn’t even crawl yet. How could they just abandon him like this? I held him closer, but I knew body heat would only do so much. 

His tiny fingers clutched at my scarf. Inspiration struck me. I unwrapped the scarf from my neck. It was red and black, made of thick wool, warm enough for my neck in weather like this. Hopefully, warm enough for him too. I swaddled the baby in the scarf. His shivers slowly died away and the color returned to his lips. He started to doze off in my arms.

I let out a sigh of relief and crawled under the counter. I held him close to me, being careful not to press him. The storm raged outside. The wind pounded against the door, it almost sounded like shrieking. It made me shiver.

Somehow, his soft breathing overtook it. It was comforting in a way. The gentle sound was quickly making me sleepy.

“Don’t worry, Buddy,” I whispered. “We’ll be out of here tomorrow.”

Sleep came over me all at once. Deep, dreamless. Which is why I was shocked when I suddenly felt my body shaking. I sat up in a panic.

“Jeez! You okay?” A strange man asked.

I looked around. Morning. A small group of people in store uniforms were gathered around me.

“Look, we’ll let the break-in slide because of the weather last night, but you can’t stay here,” the man said to me softly.

“Break-in?” I said, still dazed. “I was shopping! Your damn power went out and trapped me here.”

“Shopping?” He said, confused. “I don’t see how. We were closed last night. Gave the staff the night off because of the storm.”

“That’s impossible,” I insisted. “Someone must have been here. The store was open, and someone left-”

I gasped loudly and turned around. The baby wasn’t there. I started to search around for him frantically. The man put his hand on my shoulder.

“Hey, hey! What’s wrong?” He asked.

“The baby!” I blurted out. “Someone left a baby in here! I-I was taking care of him, but he’s not here. Did one of you take him?”

“Baby?”

“Yes!” I cried desperately. “A-a little boy. Brown hair, he had a blue onesie.”

Everyone went silent all at once. They just stared at me. The man’s face went grim.

“You… should go out the back door,” he said softly.

“But-”

“Trust me,” he insisted.

I stared at him a moment, but got up and did as he said. The air was still cold, but the wind was gone now. Only crisp morning air. Why did I have to come this way though? I was about to go back in and ask when something caught my eye. Two old, wooden crosses half-buried in the snow. I walked closer. A laminated news article was framed and drilled into the building.

January 14, 2008. A storm unlike any other blew through our sleepy little town last weekend. However, the night was not so sleepy for one Melissa Leighton and her three-month-old son, Nick. Melissa’s car appears to have hit ice along the road and crashed by a local supermarket. With phone lines down and little choice, it appears Melissa left Nick in the warm store while she went out to search for help. Sadly, it did not arrive. An unfortunate power outage caused all the store doors to automatically lock. Melissa's body was found frozen to death outside the store entrance the next morning. With the doors locked she was unable to enter the store. It appears she died attempting to reach her baby. Without heat inside the store, young Nick also succame to the cold.

There was more to the article, but I had stopped reading by that point. I remembered the strange way the wind had howled last night. Something else caught my attention though. As I looked down I noticed something peeking out from the pile of snow, right below the smaller cross. I brushed the snow away with my hand.

It wasn’t the icy winter that made my body cold anymore. A red and black scarf stared up at me from the snow.