Her feet pounded the ground as she ran. The snow would help muffle the sound of her steps, she knew. And while normally that would help her, she also knew it would leave a clear path for her tracker to follow. She could hear his footsteps behind her. They were getting closer: and fast.
Weaving through the trees, she imagined his breath hot on the back of her neck. Something tugged at the back of her shirt and for a moment she thought he had caught her. She faltered in her gait when she realized it was only a branch. Her breath came out in ragged gasps as she pushed herself harder.
Just a bit farther. If I can just break the tree line…
She closed her eyes as she ran, reaching out with other senses she trusted more than her sight.
Her steps continued to fall steadily as she raced for her life. A twig snapped to her left and she stumbled once again as her attention was broken. She reached out to catch herself before she fell: reaching for the nearest branch or tree trunk her hand could find. Instead, a hand gripped hers and caught her from falling. With a forceful twist, her arm was locked roughly behind her back and she was slammed to the ground. A knee ground into the small of her back as her face hit the cold snow. "Crap."
"I would say that, too, if I were in your position."
She struggled against the man pinning her to the ground. "Get off of me, you oaf."
"You didn't ask nicely." The knee pressed harder into her back, making her already labored breathing even more difficult.
"Get off of me, please. Before I hurt you, you damn ape."
"No."
Something hard hit the back of her head as the weight was lifted from her back and the last thing she saw was a pair of black boots by her face as darkness closed in on her mind.