A Winter Getaway

The drive to the cabin was surprisingly smooth.  Given the snow and ice on the road, I was expecting some trouble getting down here. I did experience some trouble, not with the roads, but with my wife. For Valentine’s Day, I planned a weekend getaway for the two of us. She was expecting a nice hotel with a spa and a hot tub, but when I told her I booked us a secluded cabin in the mountains, she was not happy. I assured her the trip would be great, and that it would be a chance for us truly get away from the world. Begrudgingly, she agreed and packed her bags. However, this didn’t stop her from complaining the whole there.

“I just don’t understand why you couldn’t book us a hotel back home,” she said. “I’m sure it would’ve been a lot cheaper.”

I rolled my eyes. She waved her phone around, cursing under her breath.

“I told you there wouldn’t be any cell service or internet.” I said.

“Well, what are supposed to do? How am I going to entertain myself for the next 48 hours?” she said. “What are going to do? Watch the snow melt while we sit on the porch?”

I took one hand off the steering wheel and closed it around hers.

“Honey, I promise you, this will be great,” I said, squeezing her hand. “This will be a chance for us to really spend time together as a couple. No internet, no cellphones, no distractions. Just us and nature.”

She gave me small smile. I lifted her hand and kissed it.

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Twenty minutes later, we pulled up to the cabin. The cabin stood beneath tall trees with a snow blanketing the porch. My wife and I got out of the car and retrieved our bags suitcases from the car. My wife cautiously surveyed the cabin as we walked up the pathway.

“This is… cute,” she said, observing the rocking chairs and small tables on the porch.

I took the keys out of my pocket and unlocked the front door. Once inside, relief washed over me. My wife looked pleased with the cabin. A burgundy couch and lounge chair sat in the living room, across from a black metal fireplace. A square coffee table with two chairs sat in front of a large window with a view of the mountains. A door leading out to the back porch stood beside it. She nodded her head in approval before going into the bedroom next to the kitchen. The bedroom was just as cozy as the rest of the house. A queen bed stood in the center of the room with two wooden night tables on either side. Another large window was on one side of the bedroom while two doors stood on the other side. One door led to the closet, the other led the bathroom. Of course, my wife noted how small they both were. And yet…

“I think this could be nice,” she said. “We could have a cup of coffee on the porch, sit at the table and watch the snow fall…”

She tugged on the collar of my jacket, pulling me closer to her.

“… grab some blankets and cozy up by the fire.” she whispered against my lips.

As we kissed, she began to remove my jacket. I stopped her.

“Let’s get settled in first,” I said. “I was going to go into town and pick up some groceries for us.”

“That’s a good idea. I’ll go ahead and unpack while you do that.”

“I should be back in an hour --- we’re not that far from town.”

We kissed one more time before I grabbed my keys, locked the door, and got back in the car.

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           I returned to the cabin, grocery bags in hand and unlocked the door. When I stepped inside, my wife was tied to one of the kitchen chairs with Two large men dressed in all black and wearing ski masks were standing on either side of her. One big and broad, the other one tall and skinny. I froze. My heart pounded in my chest. How did they get in here? Had I not locked all the doors? Had they done anything to my wife?

           “Hey,” the big man said casually. “How’s it going?”

           I opened and closed my mouth, not sure how to respond to that question.

           “H-how did you get in here?” I said.

           “Locks are pretty easy to pick when you’ve got the right tools.” the skinny man said.

           “Speaking of which ---” Big Man pulled out a pocketknife. “--- your wife is pretty.”

           My wife muffled a gasp as he traced the tip of the knife across her cheekbone.

           “We can change that if you’d like.” Skinny Man added.

           I dropped the grocery bags to the floor.

           “I didn’t expect you guys to be here so soon,” I said, rubbing my hand over my face. “I thought you’d be here at night, you know, when we’re asleep. I wanted this to be as painless as possible.”

           My wife’s eyebrows furrowed.

           “I guess we overestimated the time we thought it would take to get here.” Big Man said.

           “And there’s no internet or service out here, so we couldn’t call you to give you a head’s up.” Skinny Man added.

           I sighed.

           “This is going to be painless, right?” I asked the men. “I didn’t want her to suffer --- I just wanted her gone."

My wife jerked around in her restraints, rocking the chair back and forth. The men exchanged looks.

“We’ll be right back,” Big Man said, walking towards the back door. Skinny Man followed behind him.

My wife sobbed and screamed through the tape. I stepped forward and peeled it off her mouth. She took a few moments to gather herself before speaking.

“What the hell is going on?” she demanded. “I… are you working with them?”

I nodded.

“During the five years of our marriage, I’ve tried to make you happy,” I said. “I’ve spent all my money, taking you on trips and buying expensive jewelry, but it wasn’t good

enough for you. But it was never good enough. You always found something to complain about, something to criticize.”

“That’s not true, you know that’s not true. I’ve always appreciated everything you’ve ever done for me. Please don’t do this.”

“I want to believe that you’re telling the truth. But I know you’re only saying this to save your own ass.”

“No, I’m not!” she cried. “We can fix this; we can work through this together. You don’t have to do this!”

“But I do, honey. I do. If I can’t make you happy then no one can.”

She spat me.

I wiped the spit from my eye with the back of my hand. She cried for help as put the tape back over her mouth. She kicked and stomped in the chair. The men finally came back. Big Man held her down while Skinny Man covered her face with a towel. The movement of her arms and legs slowed down until they stopped altogether. Big Man used the pocketknife to cut her ties. Big Man carried her limp body out of the cabin. I pulled my wallet out of my coat pocket and gathered the money.

           “Here is that last 500,” I said, handing him the cash. “Are you about go dump her body right now?”

           “Yep. She’ll be at the bottom of the river by morning.”

           “Pleasure doing business with you.”

           We shook hands. Skinny Man nodded headed out the door to join Big Man in their car. I headed into the bedroom and checked my wristwatch for the time. My cab would be here in 2 hours, giving me plenty of time go over everything once more. I opened my suitcase on the bed. Inside, I pulled out a black folder which contained my new identity, legal documents, passport, social security card and plane tickets. Everything was in order. I went into the bathroom and changed out of my old clothes and into new ones I bought the last night. Just as I was gathering my things, I saw my cab pull up to the cabin outside the bedroom window. I picked up my suitcase, threw on a baseball cap and sunglasses, and walked out to the cab.

I’m going to be honest, going through airport security was nerve-wracking. I could feel the sweat rolling down my back with each step of the process. When I set off the metal detector and had to pulled aside for a pat-down, I thought I might pass out. Fortunately, it was just the metal from my belt that set it off. Everything from that moment on was smooth sailing. I boarded my flight, set my chair back and closed my eyes. Visions of my new life in played in my head like a movie. Morning swims, sunsets in the afternoon, a cool breeze on my skin. Everything was so peaceful and calm. I felt relaxed at the mere thought of it. If only my wife hadn’t been so hard to please, she too could experience such serenity.

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           “Our top story tonight, a more focused search for a missing couple in Grand Lake,” the news reporter said. “Good evening, I’m Erika Davis. Search teams are not giving up. News Channel 2’s, Kevin Morris spoke with Grand County sheriff, Robert Baker about the search.”

           The camera pans to an overview of Grand Lake, Colorado.

           “The search for Lillian Everett, 35 and Michael Everett, 42 continues,” Morris said. “It is now day 3 of the search here in Grand Lake, and still no sign of the couple. However, a large gathering of locals has aided in the search.”

           The camera now pans to the Morris and Baker standing by a lake.

“It’s a little odd to have two people go missing and not be able to find at least one of them,” Baker said. “Fortunately, we’ve had a much bigger response than we anticipated. So many people have joined the search party, helping us cover a lot more ground than we normally would. Of course, we’re having our dogs search the tougher areas that humans can’t easily get to. Hopefully, we’ll be able to find them.”

Images of the couple now appear on the screen.       

“Friends and family of the couple are said to be in town soon to aid in the search,” Morris said. “If you any information on the couple’s whereabouts, please call the Grand County police station. In Grand Lake, Kevin Morris, News Channel 2.”

           The camera returns to Davis.

           “We’ll update you as this story develops.”