Chapter 4: Quiet

The mid-morning sun shone through the large east-facing windows of the cabin, and onto Alex, slowly warming and waking her. It had been eleven days since the night he had attacked her, during which time Alex had neither seen nor heard him entering or leaving the cabin. She knew however that the Beast, as she had come to call him, had been returning to the cabin while she was asleep, as there was fresh food for her every morning, and the fire had been re-stoked.

The first three days she had refused to eat the food, sure that it was poisoned, and instead spent those days screaming for help. On the fourth morning, with no shred of voice left, she decided that she would rather die from poison than starvation and devoured the food that had been left for her. To her surprise, not only was it untainted, but it was delicious and hearty. Immediately upon finishing the meal, she fell solidly back asleep.

When Alex awoke again, it was dark. Fear struck her, and she frantically looked around for his hulking figure. She could see no sign of him, other than a freshly stoked fire. She stayed awake the rest of that night, terrified the Beast would return while she was awake, and of what he might do then. However, no one came, and at first light Alex fell asleep, only to be greeted by a fresh meal and warm fire waiting for her when she awoke again in the afternoon.

And so the days continued. Alex had already tried finding anyway to free herself from the shackle, but to no avail. She had given up any hope of a rescuer, to her knowledge these frozen lands were uninhabited and empty of any coveted resource that would send someone anywhere near there. No books, maps, or anything else of use or interest were in sight, let alone within her reach, and she was still without any coverings, short of the bed linens and blanket. All she could do was wait for whatever he had in store for her. The day stretched on with no disturbances other than the occasional bleating of passing goats, and Alex fell asleep in the late afternoon, as the fire in the hearth began to falter. 

Alex stirred as a log shifted in the freshly built fire. She could feel heat radiating across her body, and slowly opened her eyes. She couldn’t see the hearth, but she could smell sweat and alcohol. Alex then noticed the flickering firelight to each side of her, outlining the massive figure above her, as she heard the soft click of a shackle around her other wrist.