Case 6 - The Snowbound Spirit

The afternoon sky had already begun to darken when Leo glanced out of his office window. Snow was falling heavily over Seattle, blanketing the streets and rooftops in white. It was an unusually cold day, even by the city’s standards, but the weather reports suggested something far more concerning. Temperatures had dropped dramatically, and the snowfall was so thick that visibility had been reduced to barely a few feet.

Leo frowned.

Seattle wasn’t exactly known for its snowstorms, and while the occasional flurry was hardly unusual, this was something else entirely.

His phone began to ring.

He glanced at the screen. An unfamiliar number.

“Leo Winterhold.”

"Mr Winterhold? My name is Officer James Mitchell. I’m with the Washington State Patrol.”

Leo leaned back in his chair.

“How can I help you, Officer?”

“I was given your number by a park ranger out near the Cascades. Apparently, you helped him resolve a rather unusual situation recently.”

Leo smiled. “You could say that.”

“Well, I’ve got a situation of my own. We’ve had several incidents around Snoqualmie Pass over the last few days, and frankly, we’re running out of explanations.”

Leo sat forward.

“What sort of incidents?”

“People freezing to death. Completely frozen. We’ve had a few bodies discovered along the roads, and until now, we’ve attributed it to the extreme weather. But the latest one was different. A man was found frozen solid inside his own cabin, standing in front of a window. His heating was on, and there was no obvious reason for him to have frozen.”

Leo glanced back towards the window, watching the snow accumulate on the pavement.

“Sounds interesting.”

“I was hoping you’d be willing to come and take a look.”

Leo stood, already reaching for his coat.

“I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

The journey to Snoqualmie Pass was considerably more difficult than Leo had anticipated. The further he travelled from Seattle, the worse the weather became. Snow covered the roads, and visibility deteriorated to the point where he was forced to slow down considerably.

By the time he arrived, darkness had settled over the mountains.

Officer Mitchell was waiting at a small roadside station. He was a man in his early forties, with short brown hair, a neatly trimmed beard and a broad build. His uniform was partially concealed beneath a heavy winter jacket, and he looked thoroughly unimpressed by the weather.

"Mr Winterhold. Glad you could make it.”

“Leo, please. I’ve told people before, Aurelius makes me sound considerably older than I am.”

Mitchell chuckled.

“Fair enough. I’m James.”

They shook hands before Mitchell gestured towards a nearby table covered in reports and photographs.

“I’ll bring you up to speed. We’ve had four incidents in the last five days. Three people were found along the roads, and the latest was discovered inside his cabin. All four were completely frozen.”

“Any commonalities between them?”

“Not that we’ve found. Different ages, different occupations. They weren’t travelling together, and none of them had any obvious connection.”

“Have you investigated the cabins?”

“We’ve checked what we can. The first three were found outside, so there’s very little to go on. The latest, though, is particularly strange.”

Mitchell handed him a photograph.

A man stood beside a window, his body completely encased in ice. His face was frozen in an expression of terror, and a thin layer of frost covered the glass behind him.

Leo studied the photograph.

“How long had he been dead?”

“Hard to say. The cold has made things difficult, but the medical examiner estimates sometime during the previous evening.”

“And the cabin?”

“Heating was working perfectly. The temperature inside was perfectly comfortable. There was no sign of a broken window or an open door.”

Leo handed the photograph back.

“Well, I think it’s safe to say we aren’t dealing with an ordinary weather problem.”

The cabin was situated a short distance from the main road, surrounded by tall pine trees and several smaller holiday homes. Snow covered the roof, and a thin trail of smoke rose from the chimney.

Leo stepped inside, immediately noticing the warmth.

The heating was still running, and the fire in the living room had been recently replenished.

He walked towards the window where the man had been found.

There was nothing unusual about it. No broken glass, no strange markings and no obvious signs of forced entry.

He examined the floor, the walls and even the fireplace.

Nothing.

Leo crouched beside the window and ran his fingers along the wooden frame. A thin layer of frost had formed on the inside, but the room itself was warm.

He frowned.

Whatever had happened here, it hadn’t been caused by the weather.

He stood and walked towards the door, glancing back at the window one last time.

Something had brought the cold inside.

And whatever it was, it had done so deliberately.

Outside, Leo was approached by a woman walking along the path between the cabins. She appeared to be in her late fifties, with short grey hair and a thick red scarf wrapped tightly around her neck.

“Excuse me. Are you one of the police officers?”

“Not quite. I’m helping them with the investigation.”

The woman glanced towards the cabin.

“Another one?”

Leo nodded.

“Did you see anything unusual recently?”

She hesitated.

“Actually, yes. Yesterday afternoon, I saw a woman walking into the forest.”

“What did she look like?”

“She had long black hair. Very pale skin. She was wearing what looked like a white dress, although I couldn’t see it clearly because of the snow.”

Leo raised an eyebrow.

“A white dress? Out here?”

“I thought the same thing. I was going to warn her about the weather, but when I turned to call out, she’d disappeared.”

“Disappeared?”

"Completely. I couldn’t see her anywhere, and there weren’t any footprints in the snow.”

Leo glanced towards the forest.

“Are you sure?”

“Absolutely. I even went a little way into the trees to look for her, but there was nothing.”

Leo thanked her and watched as she continued along the path.

A woman with long black hair, dressed in white, wandering through a snowstorm without leaving footprints.

He had a feeling he knew what he was dealing with.

But he needed more evidence.

Back at the station, Leo spread the reports across a table and began examining the locations of each incident.

He marked them on a map, noting the cabins, roads and places where the bodies had been discovered.

At first, there seemed to be no pattern. The locations were spread across several miles, with no obvious connection between them.

Then he noticed something.

He moved the photographs aside and drew a line between the locations.

The four incidents formed a rough circle around the cabins.

Leo stared at the map.

“Well, that’s interesting.”

Mitchell approached.

“What have you found?”

Leo pointed at the markings.

“Your incidents. They’re all arranged around the same area.”

Mitchell leaned closer.

“You’re right. I hadn’t noticed that.”

“Neither had I, initially. But I don’t think these are random attacks.”

“What do you think is causing them?”

Leo was about to answer when the lights flickered.

Outside, the wind suddenly picked up.

Snow began battering the windows, and within seconds, the entire landscape disappeared behind a wall of white.

Mitchell looked towards the window.

“Bloody hell. Here we go again.”

Leo stood, pulling on his coat.

“Actually, I think this might be exactly what I’ve been waiting for.”

“You’re not seriously going outside in that?”

Leo smiled.

“Something tells me whatever’s doing this prefers the cold. I intend to find out whether it prefers company.”

The forest was almost completely silent.

Leo walked between the trees, his boots sinking into the deep snow. The wind howled through the branches, and visibility was so poor that he could barely see more than a few feet ahead.

He had been walking for nearly an hour when he noticed something unusual.

A figure stood between two trees.

A woman.

She was slender, with long, jet-black hair that fell well past her waist. Her skin was almost unnaturally pale, contrasting sharply with her dark eyes and delicate features. She wore a flowing white kimono, its fabric seemingly untouched by the snow surrounding her.

Despite the freezing temperatures, she appeared completely unaffected by the cold.

Her eyes were fixed on Leo.

Then she slowly raised one hand and held it towards him.

Leo stopped.

He knew what she was.

Or at least, he had a very strong suspicion.

He approached cautiously, studying her as he crossed the distance between them.

Up close, she was even more striking. Her face was beautiful, almost ethereal, but there was something deeply unsettling about her expression. Her dark eyes seemed to hold an immeasurable sadness, and her lips were tinged with blue.

She extended her hand further.

Leo looked at it before taking it.

The cold was immediate.

It spread through his fingers and up his arm, an intense chill that would have frozen an ordinary man in seconds.

But Leo barely reacted.

The woman watched him expectantly, almost disappointed when he didn’t collapse.

He smiled.

“Sorry to disappoint you, but I have something of an affinity with the elements. Ice, in particular.”

For the first time, the woman’s expression changed.

She smiled.

It was a small, almost imperceptible movement, but it transformed her face.

She released his hand and turned towards the forest, gesturing for him to follow.

Leo hesitated briefly before following.

They walked for several minutes, deeper into the woods, until the woman stopped between two enormous pine trees.

She pointed towards the ground.

Leo looked down.

“Something buried here?”

She nodded.

He crouched, brushing away the snow.

Then he looked at her.

“You want me to dig?”

Another nod.

Leo smiled.

“Well, I suppose I can do that.”

He raised his hand.

"Creatara.”

The word left his lips, and the air around his fingers shimmered. Ice gathered in his palm, forming a sturdy spade with a sharp, crystalline blade and a solid handle.

The woman watched with quiet fascination.

Leo began digging.

The snow was easy enough to clear, but the frozen earth beneath it proved considerably more difficult. He worked steadily, occasionally using his magic to break through particularly stubborn patches of ice.

After several minutes, his spade struck something hard.

He crouched and carefully cleared away the remaining soil.

Bones.

Human bones.

Beside them lay a small silver locket, tarnished with age but still intact.

Leo picked it up and examined it.

The woman stood perfectly still.

He looked at the bones, then back at her.

“I take it these belong to you?”

She nodded slowly.

Leo understood.

He carefully gathered the bones and placed them in a cloth bag he had brought with him.

“I’ll make sure they’re taken care of. I promise.”

The woman’s expression softened.

A single tear rolled down her cheek.

As it fell, the snow around them began to slow.

The wind faded.

The terrible cold that had gripped the forest for days began to lift.

Leo watched as the woman gradually became translucent, her figure dissolving into the falling snow.

For a brief moment, she smiled at him.

Then she was gone.

Leo stood alone between the trees.

The storm had stopped.

He looked down at the locket in his hand.

A Yuki-Onna.

A spirit from Japanese folklore, known for her association with snow, ice and death.

But this one hadn’t been hunting out of malice.

She had been searching for something.

Or perhaps someone.

Leo returned to the station shortly before midnight.

Mitchell was waiting, looking considerably more relaxed now that the storm had passed.

“Where have you been? The weather cleared up almost as quickly as it started.”

Leo removed his coat.

“Had a little walk.”

“A walk?”

“Yes.”

Mitchell stared at him.

“Into that?”

Leo shrugged.

“I’ve been out in worse.”

Mitchell shook his head.

“Well, whatever you did, it seems to have worked. The temperature has already started climbing, and the snow has stopped.”

Leo smiled.

“Then I think your problems are over.”

Mitchell looked at him curiously.

“Can you tell me what happened?”

Leo considered the question.

Then he smiled.

“You sure you want to know?”

Mitchell looked towards the window, then back at Leo.

“Probably not.”

“Wise decision.”

The officer chuckled and extended his hand.

“Thank you, Leo. Whatever it was, I’m glad it’s over.”

Leo shook his hand.

“You’re welcome.”

Back in Seattle, Leo placed the bones and locket carefully on his desk.

He had no intention of leaving them in storage indefinitely.

The spirit deserved more than that.

He opened his laptop and began searching for information about the locket. Using a combination of public records and some rather less conventional methods, he eventually discovered a photograph that matched the one inside.

The woman in the picture was standing beside the Yuki-Onna, although considerably younger.

Her sister.

After several hours of searching, Leo found a possible living relative.

The sister had survived, grown old and eventually raised a family of her own.

Leo sent an email explaining that he had recovered some personal belongings and remains belonging to her missing sister. He deliberately left out the details of how he’d found them.

A few weeks passed before he received a reply.

It came from the sister’s daughter.

She thanked him for his efforts and explained that her mother had spent most of her life wondering what had happened to her sister.

The woman had been travelling when she disappeared. She’d become lost during a journey through the mountains, and despite numerous searches, no one had ever managed to find her.

Her family had always hoped that one day they might discover what had happened.

Leo arranged for the bones and locket to be returned to the family, asking only that they be given a proper burial.

When the email arrived confirming that everything had been taken care of, Leo leaned back in his chair.

Another case closed.

He glanced out of the window.

Seattle was quiet that evening. The snow had long since melted, and the city had returned to its usual grey and rainy self.

For once, there were no mysterious disappearances, no strange noises and no supernatural disturbances demanding his attention.

Leo smiled.

Sometimes, he thought, the best part of his job wasn’t defeating monsters or uncovering ancient secrets.

Sometimes, it was simply helping someone find peace.

And somewhere in the mountains beyond Seattle, a lonely spirit could finally rest.