Tella gripped the steering wheel with a death grip and strained to see through the swirling white. If she were lucky, her tires still had enough tread left to maintain their death grip upon the road. “I still can’t believe we drove right into this.”

“No one expected the snowstorm,” Benji said, scrolling through his phone. “Unless the app didn’t update for some reason.”

“I think it didn’t update,” she forced out between clenched teeth. “Too late now. No hotels between here and home.”

Her peripheral vision caught a flash of bright light, and his phone pinged in the silence. She’d killed the staticky radio thirty miles before, hoping it would keep from distracting her precarious creep through the winding mountain roads.

Her brother let out a curse. “Road’s closed up ahead. Last exit in a mile.”

“And the back road detours will take just as long.” Tella hissed out a long breath and wrinkled her nose. “Better hope that janky gas station is still open. Might be our only shelter for the evening.”

Ten minutes later – on a drive that normally might have taken two – they slid to a stop at a decidedly ramshackle gas station with a rusted sign, halting only because the ice went upward.

“I saw lights,” Benji mentioned. “Sparkly ones. Festive.”

She smacked him with her free arm, whipping it so hard toward the passenger seat it tingled. Then Tella realized what she really needed to do, and slammed her fist onto the door locks. “Ow.”

“Serves you right.” He pulled back one side of his mouth and looked at her with concerned eyes and furrowed brows. “What was that about?”

“We’re in Appalachia,” she hissed. “Did you listen to none of Granny’s stories when we were kids?”

“Not really,” he admitted, his hand inching closer to the door handle. “Let me out. It’s just Christmas lights. C’mon, I’ve gotta go.”

She turned the key and hoped her tiny vehicle would last through the night as the engine coughed. “You don’t follow the lights, little brother. Not if you ever want to find home again.”

Benji snorted. “What rubbish. It’s just a gas station.”

“Your app was fine,” Tella said grimly. Through the storm, she caught a glimpse of a state trooper’s tall hat, flickers of snow making it hard to tell how far away he – it? – was. “Sparkly, inviting lights in the middle of a freak snowstorm? We go. We go, now!”

***

Thanks to Leigh for this week’s prompt, and mine went to Parrish. Check them out over at MOTE!

PS – I just discovered the earlier link wasn’t working for Fantastic Schools Sports, and also missed nother Mike’s helpful correction until today (thanks, Mike!). If you’re so inclined, find it here. I’d love to hear what you think of Hide and Freeze!