Snowstorm

Ravina’s P.O.V.

I throw our suitcases into the trunk and shut it as my hands shake. How did he find us? I run back into the house and sigh as I look at everything we’re leaving behind. I thought we had finally found a place to escape to, but I should have known better. Lyle is relentless if nothing else.

“Mommy, can Teddy come with us?” my five-year-old son Cody asks. He has the same black hair and green eyes as I do, but some of his facial expressions look just like his dad’s.

“Of course, we can’t leave Teddy behind. Did you finish packing your bag with your favorite toys?” I ask as I get our coats from the closet. We live in the small town of Pollock Pines in California, not far from Lake Tahoe. I moved here from Grand Rapids, Michigan, and filed for divorce as soon as I found out I was pregnant. There was no way I was going to let Lyle touch Cody.

“I packed them all. Are you ready for our big adventure?” he asks as he puts his coat and boots on. It’s snowing like crazy, and it’s probably not the best time to be on the road. However, if we don’t go now, then Lyle may show up at any minute. After we’re all bundled up, I do one last walk-through of the house and look at the Christmas tree. I removed the ornaments that were from Cody’s first Christmas and the ones I bought him each year, but I’m leaving the rest. I carry our last few bags out and throw them into the car before buckling him into his booster seat.

As we pull away from what has been our home for more than five years, there’s a heaviness in my heart. Is this how the rest of our lives are going to be? Are we always going to be on the run from that bastard?

When I found the note on the front door this morning, I knew it was from Lyle. Even if he didn’t hand-deliver it himself, he knows where I am and will come when I least expect it. Thinking about the note still gives me chills.

Knock, Knock, Knock. You thought you could run from me, but no matter where you hide, I will find you. I will not rest until I have you and my son.

I should have known he knew about Cody. When I left, he probably retraced my steps and found out from the doctor that I was pregnant. How did he know I have a son, though? Someone must have found me and told him about Cody.

“Mommy, where are we going for our big adventure?” Cody asks as I get onto Highway 50 and head toward South Lake Tahoe. The snow is falling hard, so traffic is moving extremely slowly.

“I don’t know yet. We’ll drive until we find a place we like, and then we’ll find a place to stay.” I’m gripping the steering wheel so tightly my knuckles are white.

“Yay, I hope it’s somewhere fun,” Cody replies. I smile at him in the mirror as he begins talking to his teddy bear. I never told him about Lyle. When he asks where his daddy is, I tell him it’s just the two of us. I don’t want to lie and say he’s dead, but I also don’t want to tell him the truth.

I grew up with an abusive aunt who thought I was her punching bag. My parents died in a car accident when I was three, so Aunt Terri was the only family I had. As soon as I graduated from high school, I moved from Covington, Kentucky, to attend Western Michigan University for web development. I was accepted on an academic scholarship that covered most of my tuition.

I met Lyle when I was a freshman and he was a senior. Many of the girls swooned over his shaggy blonde hair and dark blue eyes, but I thought he was too slick, so I shied away from him. I flat-out told him I wasn’t interested several times, but he was persistent and eventually wore me down. When he graduated, he stayed to go to law school, and I finished my degree in web development a year early. We got married a month after we graduated and moved to Grand Rapids. I thought it was the beginning of my happily ever after. I was wrong.

Lyle began having affairs almost as soon as he started working with the firm that recruited him. I confronted him the first few times and begged him to stop. At first, he would yell and belittle me, making me feel like I was a failure as a wife. I stopped caring who he was sleeping with and was thankful that he wasn’t home. I should have left, but I didn’t have the energy. Lyle disliked my lack of caring even more than me questioning him, and that’s when he stopped yelling and began using his fists. I worked online from home, so no one noticed the black eyes or the way I winced when I walked. Lyle would come home at night after being with whoever he wanted to be with and still expected me to make love to him. I would just lie there and let him do what he wanted until he passed out beside me. My happily ever after was turning into a nightmare.

The first time I had morning sickness, I thought I had the flu. After a few days, I decided to get checked out by the doctor. I didn’t tell Lyle because I didn’t think he would care. When she told me I was pregnant, my first thought was that I couldn’t bring a child into the world while I was with Lyle, so I decided the only thing I could do was leave.

Two days after getting the news about the baby, Lyle told me he was going to be out most of the night entertaining clients. I knew that would be my only chance to leave and put some distance between us before he realized I was gone. As soon as he left, I packed my suitcases, put them in my car, and went to a divorce attorney. I paid her and said I didn’t want anything from Lyle other than his signature on the paperwork. I didn’t tell her I was pregnant. I bought a burner phone, gave her the number, and told her not to share it with anyone.

I began driving west and only stopped once at a hotel to sleep. When I reached California, I stopped when I got to Pollack Pines. It was small and remote enough that I felt like the baby and I would be safe there. I changed my name from Anna Wells to Ravina Kellerman before putting anything into my name. I found a small two-bedroom house that was for rent and signed a two-year lease. When I had Cody, it was the happiest day of my life. I cried as I looked at his innocent, sweet face. He was beautiful and perfect.

I have continued to do web design under my alias and have quite a bit of money saved. Deep inside, I knew the day would come when Cody and I would be on the run again. Lyle refused to sign the divorce papers. My lawyer said he was furious that I had left and tried to demand that she give him my location. She didn’t even know where I was, and that’s exactly why I kept it private. I know Lyle, and he has ways of getting what he wants.

The snow is coming down so hard I can barely see anything, and can’t tell if there are any cars in front of me or behind me. I glance in the rearview mirror at Cody, who’s sound asleep. I’m glad he’s getting some rest. I would like to at least get to Nevada before we have to stop. I look at the clock and realize we’ve been driving for over an hour.

I’m moving at a snail’s pace, trying to keep my eyes on the road, but there’s so much snow I can’t even be sure where the road is. Should I pull over? We have gone to Lake Tahoe before, so I know there are some areas with no barriers that are straight drops into the ravine below. I slow down even more, but I can’t see anything. I don’t have a choice, I have to stop.

I carefully pull over to the side of the road, and just as I put the car into park, I see blinding headlights through the snow. It looks like something big. Maybe it’s a snowplow. Why are the lights coming right at me? I hold down my horn, but it doesn’t stop. I turn to look at Cody just as the plow hits the side of the car and pushes us. I push my brakes and my horn, but it keeps pushing us. I scream as we begin sliding down a cliff, the car rolls a couple of times, and when it stops, we are upside down.

“Cody?” I whisper as I lose consciousness, but he doesn’t answer.