Georgia

The trees that ran along the highway shimmered and sparkled like something out of a fairytale. Every tree, bush, and shrub had been feathered with a delicate coating of frost. The icy sheen usually melted as the sun rose and the day warmed, but it had been protected by the sharply cold temperatures. It was particularly spectacular in the last rose-coloured rays of sunset. Only the sheer face of the mountain stood stark against the crystalline scene.

"Damn!" Georgia hissed as her little red compact sped up the mountain road. It was reckless to drive this fast, in this weather, but she was even further behind schedule than she had thought. Since Hugo had forced her to stay late, she had been caught in traffic as she left the city. She wasn't the only one heading home for the holidays.

Well, calling it 'home' was a stretch...

She lay heavily on the gas, eager to make up for the lost time. She had told her sister that she would be there before midnight, but that looked less and less likely. The sun was quickly disappearing into the trees. Soon it would be gone, making the drive all the more treacherous.

Her panic worsened. It didn't help that her stomach was twisted in a tangle of anticipation and anxiety. This was the first time in years that she had returned to the tiny town where she had grown up. If it had been up to her, she would never have come back. It was the last place she wanted to be for Christmas, but that's where her sister was. She didn't understand how she could've moved back there, but—

Just then, her phone, mounted to the dash, began to ring. A quick glance at the screen told her the call was from the very sister she was rushing to meet. Keeping her eyes on the road, she jabbed blindly at the screen until the call connected.

"Hello?" Her sister's voice spilled from the speakers, filling the car with her high, girlish voice. Her rosy-cheeked face appeared on the small screen. She had the same dark hair as Georgia, though hers was cut to her chin. "Gigi? Are you there?" she said. 'Gigi' was Georgia's childhood nickname. Only Lena ever used it anymore.

"I'm here, Lena," Georgia answered. "I was just thinking of you."

Lena's twittering laugh echoed through the phone. "I guess my sister-sense was tingling. I was just wondering where you were. Are you getting close?"

"We-ell," Georgia began, drawing out the word as her face tensed into a wince.

"Oh no," her sister said, her face falling. She already sensed the bad news.

"Hugo kept me late because there was a last minute emergency with our proposal for the hotel in Aspen, and now I'm a little behind—"

"Hugo!" Lena hissed, saying his name like it was a word far worse. It was no secret that Lena thought Georgia was too good to be one of his much-maligned assistants.

"Please don't get upset. I had to do it if I wanted to keep my job and you know how much this job means to me, Lili," Georgia sighed, hoping that using her sister's own nickname would soften her. Lena didn't understand that toiling away under hotelier Hugo Beaumont was worth it. "And you know unnecessary stress is not good for the baby."

"What about how 'unnecessary stress' is bad for you?" Lena snapped.

"Lena, please," Georgia said with a sigh. "You know how it is. The more I keep my head down and do what he says, the sooner I get that recommendation and then I'm out of his grip." She thought briefly of telling her sister of the 'good' news—that Hugo had entrusted her with curating the options for his newest property, but she knew her sister would not see it as a good thing. Quite the opposite, in fact. So, instead, all Georgia said was, "Can we please drop it for now? I don't want to think about Hugo right now. I need to focus on driving. And you don't need to be thinking about him either. It just gets you all riled up."

Lena grumbled but did as she asked and dropped it, knowing Georgia was right. She was mere weeks away from popping and didn't need to get all aggravated by thinking of Hugo. Besides, they had this argument too many times before. 

"Alright, fine. How is the drive?" she said, changing the subject. "How much farther do you have to go?"

"I'm just going through the pass now," Georgia replied. The mountain pass was winding, but Georgia's car's snow tires were handling it well. They had been expensive, but she was glad she splurged on them.

"Oh," Lena said, her voice tightening. Georgia could almost hear Lena cursing out Hugo in her head. "That's not very far at all. Maybe you should turn back and pull in somewhere for the night—"

Georgia scoffed. "I'll make it. The sun's not down yet."

"It's not just the dark I'm worried about," Lena said, her tone turning ominous. "Haven't you been listening to the weather?"

"No, I haven't," Georgia said. When she had finally left, she put on an invigorating playlist and hadn't thought about it since. A glance around her surroundings showed nothing amiss. Despite the chill, the sky was mostly clear. The sun was still shining, even if it was sinking quickly. A soft blanket of fog skirted through the trees, and the air seemed calm enough. "Why?"

"There's a blizzard blowing in!" Lena said, sounding exasperated now. Since she was the oldest sister, she had long taken on the mantle of motherly protection for her little sister.

"I can't see anything blowing anywhere," Georgia replied, cocking a single eyebrow as she scanned the road in front of her. Ahead, it was crisp and clear.

"Well, I'm sure you will soon," her sister grumbled back.

As her sister spoke, Georgia checked her rearview mirror.

For the first time, she looked above the road to the sky behind her. On the horizon was a looming line of dark clouds, ugly and foreboding. Georgia winced. She hated to admit it, but her sister was right—a blizzard was indeed blowing her way. She leaned on the gas a bit more. If she hurried, she could beat the storm over the mountain, then she'd be in the clear.

"It'll be fine," Georgia said, but her heart wasn't in the words.

Lena could tell. She groaned. "You're not going to make it in time. You should turn back."

"I swear I can make it," Georgia replied, getting huffy. "It's been a while, but I know this road. It will be fine."

Lena glared at her through the screen but sighed, knowing there was nothing she could do to change her sister's mind. "Call when you're on the other side of the pass," Lena said with a sigh. "Or if you stop for the night, or if you—"

"I'll call," Georgia said. "Don't worry. Whatever happens, I'll call. Or text. I promise."

"Good," Lena said, but she still didn't sound satisfied. "I know you hate it when I nag, but I worry, especially in this weather."

"What weather? The storm isn't here yet!" Georgia insisted. But then something else caught her eye just ahead. She slowed her car. "Wait, uh-oh..."

"What is it?" her sister asked.

The old red truck ahead of her was slowing to a stop. As Georgia neared, she spotted a large black SUV sitting diagonally across the road, the lights on the front dash flashing red and blue.

"Police," Georgia said with a sigh, pulling to a stop behind the truck.

Lena's eyes went wide. "You weren't speeding, were you?"

"Of course not!" Georgia replied, slightly offended even though it was true. "It looks like they have some kind of stop set up."

Lena clucked her tongue. "I bet the road is blocked," she said, almost with a note of smug victory. "Guess you will have to turn around."

As her sister spoke, a police officer—dressed in a heavy parka with a fur-lined hood pulled up around their face—started walking towards her car.

"We'll see," Georgia told her sister. "I'll call you back."

"You better!" Lena replied. "Talk to you later. Love you."

"Love you, too," Georgia echoed before jabbing the end button on her phone. She rolled down the window a smidge as the officer stepped alongside her car. A rush of biting cold wind snuck in through the gap, making Georgia shiver.

"Hello there," the officer said in a gruff voice. His full cheeks were red and wind-bitten, and his mustache was dusted with ice. "It's a cold one, eh?"

"S-Sure is," Georgia replied, her teeth giving an involuntary chatter. She was glad she had changed into jeans before getting on the road, but against this chill, they did little good.

"Well, 'fraid to say the pass ahead is closed. Avalanche warning. There's been some heavy snow these past few days and there's more on the way."

"No!" Georgia groaned. "I need to get through tonight!"

"That won't be happening," he said plainly, giving her a look of pity. "I'm 'fraid you'll have to head back the way you came."

"Isn't there any other way?" Georgia pleaded. It had been a while since she had been up here, but she knew some back roads could take her around the mountain if she couldn't go over. "I really need to get through."

"None that I'd recommend in that thing," the officer said firmly, eyeing her little car. "I strongly suggest you head back now before the storm hits. Drive safe, now." He smiled at her and patted the roof of her car before turning around. He stopped briefly by the large red truck ahead of Georgia's car, then headed back to his SUV.

Georgia knocked her head against her steering wheel, muttering curses under her breath. She had promised her sister that she would be there before Christmas, and she only had so much time off booked for the holidays. Hugo wouldn't hear of an extension, especially with that presentation looming.

How long would it take to give the highway the all-clear? Georgia wondered as she chewed her lip, a bad habit of hers when she was nervous. A day? Two?

The red truck ahead of her began to move, turning around to do as the officer had recommended. But as it drove past Georgia's car, it stopped. The driver rolled down their window. It was an older woman, her long silver-streaked hair pulled back into a long braid and tucked under a plaid hat with fuzzy ear flaps.

"Hey, hun," the woman called as Georgia rolled her own window down again. "I heard you're lookin' for a way around the mountain."

"Yes!" Georgia brightened. "Yes, I am, but the officer said I wouldn't make it in my car."

"Not on your own, you won't," the woman replied. "But if you follow behind my truck, you'll do just fine."

Georgia studied the woman. She was bundled in a shearling-lined flannel jacket, her softly-wrinkled face was pink from the cold, and her rosy cheeks were pulled up into a smile. She reminded her of her late grandmother, a tough farmer's wife who was happy to help all who needed it.

Something about her gentle smile gave Georgia the feeling that she could trust her.

"Are you sure?" Georgia asked.

"Of course, I've done it before."

Georgia smiled wide. Maybe she would make it to her sister's in time after all. "You're an angel!"

"I don't know about that," the kindly woman said with a laugh. "But I'm happy to help. I'm Sue Nissen, by the way."

"I'm Georgia Greene," Georgia said. "It's lovely to meet you."

🎄

Have you ever driven in the snow?