Author's Notes: A very new genre of fiction writing for me, so it's probably a little shaky. With that in mind, please let me know what you think!!! No beta, all mistakes are mine.

Jenny

Isolation:

No matter how hard they tried, they couldn't escape the bitter chill. What had started as a pleasant vacation away had somehow turned into the getaway from hell, and there was nothing either could do to rectify the situation before things inevitably got worse.

When they arrived at the cabin, it had been a warm 70-degree day, with a bright shining sun and a warm southern breeze. They had unpacked their bags and went for a walk around the serene lake, only slightly aware and concerned over the lack of other guests. Of course, early spring was a break in tourism, the winter visitors had returned home and the lake's water was still too cool to attract summer visitors. The awkward weather was probably the sole reason they had gotten such a good rate.

They had been searching for a romantic getaway for months, but all wooded cabins were outrageously expensive, and the thought of a big-city vacation sounded about as appealing as actually working. What both Greg Sanders and Sara Sidle craved were six nights and seven days alone, without cell phones, visitors, and fingerprint powder.

And at first glance, their secluded cabin met all of their needs: isolation, quiet, and romantic. Unfortunately, things wouldn't prove to work quite that easily. In Sara's case, things rarely worked as easily as planned, and in Greg's, the romantic rendezvous with his girlfriend was almost too good to be true. In any event, by the end of their first night, both had wished they had stayed in Nevada. And unfortunately for the two campers, things would only get worse.

Sunday

"Come on Sara, we don't have to unpack right away, the suitcases will still be here when we get back. It's beautiful outside; don't you want to check out the rest of the property?" Greg complained, standing in the doorway as he watched his girlfriend unzip her purple suitcase, "It won't kill you to relax a bit and just have some fun."

"We may as well do it now, before we get too comfortable and forget. Besides, after a walk, we'll probably want to shower, and we can't do that if all of our clothes are still packed." Sara countered, "It will only take a few minutes, there's no need to rush…we'll be here for a week, which gives us plenty of time for exploring."

Greg sighed, hoisting his own suitcase onto the maple dresser, "Okay, okay, you win. But let's speed it up, okay? I want to get some time to test out the lake before it gets dark."

"Are you serious?" Sara asked, stopping her own unpacking to stare incredulously at her boyfriend, "The water's probably damn near 60 degrees, you can't possibly be thinking about swimming." Her suspicions were confirmed as Greg retrieved a red and orange swimsuit from his suitcase, "You're serious."

"As a heart attack." Greg replied, smiling as he watched Sara's eyebrows rise slightly, "What? We're spending a week on a lake, we can't go back to Vegas without sampling all that this place has to offer."

Sara shook her head, tucking her socks into a drawer, replying sarcastically, "And when we have to leave early because you've caught pneumonia?"

"That's an old wives tale." Greg replied with a smirk, "No one's twisting your arm to join me, calm down."

"I'm calm." Sara retorted, placing her folded shorts into the drawer, repeating quietly, "I'm calm."

Greg zipped his empty suitcase, tossing it onto the closet floor before falling back into the bed, "How about we blow off exploring and test out the bed?"

"Or not." Sara retorted, closing the bottom dresser drawer before closing her suitcase and placing it on top of Greg's, "There's plenty of time for that too, but only a few hours of sunlight left."

Greg held out his hand, and Sara grabbed it, taking a step back and pulling on his arm to bring him to his feet. Instead, he pulled back, sending her toppling on top of him, laughing as he rolled over, pinning her beneath him as his lips found hers. She closed her eyes, wrapping her arms around his neck as she hungrily reciprocated, moaning softly and opening her eyes once more as he paused. Gazing into his deep eyes, she shook her head, "If we start this, we're unlike to stop."

"And that would be a bad thing?"

"No." Sara replied, her lips meeting his once more, greedily accepting what he had to offer. After a few passionate moments, she turned her head to the side, "You said you wanted to go for a walk."

"I do." Greg replied with disappointment, reluctantly pushing himself to his feet, "Raincheck?"

"Oh definitely." Sara purred, standing and giving him another quick kiss before stepping into her hiking boots, squatting to fasten the laces, "You won't escape that easily, Mister Sanders."

"Now that's what I like to hear." Greg replied softly, his hand lightly tracing up her back, causing a shiver to run down her spine. Spurred on by her smile, he let his hand come to rest right above her waistband, "Ever had sex in the woods?"

"Once, but the sticks and bugs really kill the mood." Sara replied over her shoulder, walking away from her enamored boyfriend towards the bathroom, where she had already put away her brush and elastic for her hair.

Greg watched as she pulled her hair into a ponytail, moaning softly, "You have no idea what you do to me."

Sara's only response was laughter as she brushed past him, pecking him gently on the cheek, "Come on, the lake is waiting for us."

He watched her disappear outside, shaking his head lightly. He was wrong. She knew exactly what she was doing to him, and she enjoyed every single minute of it.

An hour later, their cabin was nowhere in sight as they navigated the thick forest, searching for boat rental cabin that the brochure had claimed was in the near vicinity of the cabin. So far, they had seen two snakes, countless bugs, and endless brush, but no boat facility, and both were ready to give up.

Sara stifled a yawn, pausing to scratch behind her knee, which had started to swell from the bite of whatever insect had gotten her. Rubbing her tired eyes, she complained softly, "Let's just head back, okay? I'm tired, sweaty, and itchy…we can rent a boat tomorrow. I'm just ready to go back to the cabin and veg for awhile."

"Okay," Greg sighed, "I guess you're right. At this rate, by the time we find the place, it will be too late to go out on the lake anyway."

Sara nodded tiredly, squeezing his hand as they started back on the path they had just traveled, "I promise we'll come back tomorrow."

"I know." Greg replied, falling step in step with Sara as they lapsed into a comfortable silence. They had only been walking for a few minutes when Greg felt a chill run up his spine, the hair on his arms standing on end as his footsteps stopped and he turned back around to peer behind him. He could feel someone's eyes on him, although he was certain there was no one else anywhere near them. He slowly scrutinized each tree within view, trying to pinpoint where exactly anyone could, or would, be hiding. He knew someone was out there, he could feel their presence in the air. And if being a criminal investigator had taught him anything, it was that danger could be lurking anywhere at any time.

"What's wrong?" Sara asked. She had finally realized she had gained some distance on her boyfriend, and was now backtracking towards him, concerned by his serious gaze, "Greg, baby?"

Greg shook his head, trembling slightly as a cold wind blew through him, his uneasiness growing, "I thought I heard something…it's nothing, lets just get back to the cabin."

"Don't worry; I haven't seen anyone all day. Your mind is probably just playing tricks on you," Sara replied, squeezing Greg's hand, "The silence can do that to you, especially when you're used to working around death all the time."

Greg shrugged, glancing around the area once more, "I guess you're right. I'm probably just overreacting."

"I know you are," Sara replied, kissing his cheek lightly, "Let's get back to the cabin, whip up some dinner, and enjoy our first night alone together in weeks."

With a heavy sigh, Greg allowed Sara to lead him back towards their cabin, unable to shake off the uneasiness and apprehension filling his stomach, causing his blood to run cold. Something was wrong, someone was out there. And as much as he tried to ignore he, he couldn't help but feel that whatever it was, it wasn't good.

--

Sara awoke with a start, drenched with sweat, although she was violently shaking from the cold chill in the air. Sitting up, she first noticed the open window, then the fact that she could see her own breath. While it was still early in the year, the forecast hadn't predicted anything that would come close to being cold enough to see your own breath. Shivering, she walked to the window, closing and latching it, all too aware of the suffocating sensation of fear. She couldn't help but wonder if someone had entered through the window, if they were still in the cabin, if they were watching her right now, waiting to kill her. She knew it was unreasonable, but for some reason beyond rational thought, she was scared to death.

Looking back towards the bed, she called Greg's name softly, her voice trembling uncharacteristically as she failed to rouse him. Deciding her paranoia wasn't enough of a warrant to disturb him, she decided to do the one thing she always verbally discouraged female horror movie characters from doing. In the darkness, she opened the bedroom door and ventured into the living room, holding her breath in anticipation and fear.

She had no idea that her actions would set forth a chain of events that were not only terrifying, but unimaginable to her scientific brain.

TBC