Idle conversation and small cat naps seemed to move the time in the car along as Antonia and Aiden waited through the storm, listening to the sound of the whipping wind as it slammed against the side of the SUV. By 5:30, they were both feeling a bit claustrophobic, and the gas needle was hovering at a quarter tank. "Do you want to head up to that cabin?" Aiden asked, watching as Antonia nodded her head, glancing over to him, she pulled the keys from the ignition. They could feel the cold from the outside creeping into the car already as Aiden put his gloves on. He watched her for a moment as she leaned forward to the glove box, pulling out a box of playing cards. He said nothing as she flipped the box open and pulled two cards out. Carefully she tucked them into the top of the driver side window so they hung securely.
"What's that for?" He asked.
"Nothing." She said, giving him a slight smile as she put the box of cards in her pocket. "Just a precaution." She smiled and opened her car door. She reached in and grabbed a small knapsack that she kept on the floor of the passenger side. He looked at her curiously. "My storm kit." She said, and he lifted an eyebrow.
"You make a habit of getting stuck in snowstorms?"
"No." She said as she smirked at him. "Rain storms, tornadoes, hurricanes. Those are storms too." She winked as she closed the door at his laugh.
He climbed from the car and Antonia locked the doors, pulling her flashlight from her pocket as she grabbed her gloves and put them on. "Ugh, it's so cold." She muttered, as she felt an arm around her shoulder pull her closer. She looked up at him, and smiled. "That's better." She whispered as they started to walk toward the fallen tree. Aiden helped Antonia climb over it, and from the other side, she helped him climb over it as well, noting that the snow was really starting to pile up, and the drifts were even worse. Aiden stepped a little in front of her, walking at a quick pace, he listened to the sounds of her steps behind him as he kept an eye out on where they were going. It would be easy to miss this cabin if they weren't careful.
"You okay?" he asked, glancing back to her, she trudged sleepily through the snow. He reached his hand for her, and she grabbed it, speeding up just a bit as they walked together. It didn't take long to reach the small gravel drive to the cabin, though there was no drive to speak of with the snow that had been falling. "You're sure you saw smoke?" He whispered.
"I did." She said, taking a deep breath. "Can't you smell it?"
"Fire must have burned out during the night." He said, smelling the faint smell of smoke in the air. They walked down the cleared area where the drive was until they saw the cabin tucked among the trees. Other than the smoke, there had been no indication that someone was there. There were no footprints in the snow, no car in the driveway. They stepped up to the porch slowly, unsure of their safety because of the snow that covered it, Aiden helped Antonia up beside him. She took a deep breath and made a face. "What?"
"I smell marijuana." She whispered.
"You're an expert on the smell of pot?" He smirked.
"Hey, I'm just helping here. There's no need to be an ass." she muttered, giving him a playful glare. "Just knock on the door. I'm cold."
She took her knapsack and placed it beside the door, pushing it under a small wooden bench on the porch, so it wasn't exposed, but also easy to retrieve if she needed it.
Aiden stood in front of Antonia, blocking her from the door. She knew what he was doing, and took a step back, giving him a little peace of mind. He paused before he knocked, noting the newly splintered wood on the door frame, he glanced to Antonia, and she nodded. He raised his hand to knock, rapping on the door strongly. There was no movement at first, so he rapped again, listening for movement in the cabin. After a few moments, they could hear shifting on the other side of the door. "Hello?" Aiden said, reaching his arm behind him, he felt Antonia touch it to ensure that she was okay. "Hello, we are really sorry to bother you. We had an accident down the road, we were wondering if you had a phone." Aiden said politely.
"We ain't got no phone." A voice said from inside the cabin. He sounded sleepy, and fairly young.
"A tree fell near our vehicle, we can't pass on the road. The storm is really picking up out here." Aiden replied.
"You got a vehicle out there?"
"It's down the road." Aiden said, unsure what the line of questioning was, he looked back at Antonia, who shrugged. "Someone will be coming by to get us, we were just wondering if you had a fire we could use to keep warm?"
The door opened a bit, and the man was holding a flashlight. He looked Aiden up and down, his eyes were filled with confusion, and an intense irritation. He looked to be a little younger than Antonia and Aiden, disheveled and dirty. "There someone with you, man?"
"Just my girlfriend." He said, not wanting to make things more complicated. "We were lost in the storm, ended up driving down this dead end, and on our way back through, a tree fell."
Antonia was beginning to get impatient, the snow was starting to bite at her skin, and all she wanted was some warmth. "Can we please come inside?" she said, her teeth chattering. The man then closed the door, and she looked up at Aiden, who gave her a confused glance. He was going to knock again, when the man opened the door again, a little wider.
"You can come in." He said, allowing Aiden and Antonia to step inside. Aiden was on alert, as the room was dark, and the flashlight scanning it found just trash scattered, and an old mattress on the ground, the fire was just embers, but at least there was some warmth in the room. Antonia had hold of his arm and was holding it with all of her strength.
"You okay?" he whispered.
"No." she said, trembling against him.
"It's okay." He whispered, dropping a kiss on her head, they moved forward and stood awkwardly by the fireplace for a moment. Aiden had his arm protectively around Antonia, and his back against the wall as the other man just stood for a moment and looked toward another room, then back at them. He walked forward, glaring at the couple in front of him, and dropped a couple of pieces of wood on the fire, then excused himself and went into the second room of the cabin.
Antonia turned in Aiden's arms, feeling him pull her tightly into him, she felt safer and more secure. They stood by the fire for a couple minutes, and he gently ran his fingers through her hair, trying to ensure her that he would keep her safe. "The sun will be up soon." He whispered. "Then it won't be so dark in here." He rubbed her back, trying to keep both of them warm, and they heard a noise from the next room, a noise that both of them knew well, the clicking of the hammer of a gun.
"Who are you?" A voice came from the dark, not the voice of the first man, but someone else.
"Just passing through, our car is stuck." Aiden said, lifting his hands up into the air, Antonia stayed where she was, her arms around him.
"That's not what I asked." The man said, stepping forward, his face was illuminated by the fire, he held a gun pointed at them, as the first man lurked behind him in the second room.
Aiden leaned his head down to Antonia's ear, keeping his eye on the man. "Get behind me now." He whispered, watching her look up at him, she moved very slowly.
"Don't you dare move!" The man exclaimed. "Who the hell are you, and why are you here?"
"Like I said." Aiden said. "My girlfriend and I were driving home from a friend's house, and we became lost in this part of town. There's no cell signal, so we couldn't call for help." He said, and as he spoke, Antonia was able to move behind him. She held onto his jacket, her hands gripping it tightly as she closed her eyes against his shoulder.
"Why did you come here?"
"It's the closest cabin to where our car is, that's the only reason." Aiden said, his voice calm and civil, with not a trace of fear. "We can just go, it's fine." He said.
"You're not going anywhere!" he exclaimed. "Sit down!"
"I'd prefer not to." Aiden said.
"I said SIT DOWN NOW!" he exclaimed, coming toward Aiden, the agent was able to get a very good look at the assailant, and found something about him to be familiar, he stepped backwards.
Antonia stepped against the corner of the room, leaning against the wall, she slid down it slowly until she was crouched against the wall. Aiden stepped backwards and sat down as well, being sure that she was blocked by his body, his hands still up. "You don't have to hurt us." Aiden said. "We didn't mean to trespass." He said, trying to give the man an excuse for his anger, an excuse that would easily get them out of the line of fire.
"I want to know why a guy in a suit, and a fancy coat, is driving around in this neighborhood at this time of night." The man said angrily. "Are you a cop?"
"Do cops wear suits and fancy coats?" Aiden asked, deflecting the question.
"Don't you get smart with me." He said, waving the gun in Aiden's face, Aiden kept completely calm, though he could hear Antonia behind him, her breathing becoming more and more shallow. "Gimme your car keys." The man demanded, holding his hands out.
"I'm telling you, there is a tree blocking the road."
"GIVE ME THE GODDAMNED KEYS!" He screamed.
"I don't have them." Aiden said honestly, his hands still in the air.
"Well where the hell are they?" He shouted.
"Antonia?" Aiden said softly, knowing she could hear him, but wouldn't answer.
"What the hell is wrong with her?" The man asked, glancing to Antonia as she stared into space, unseeing, her eyes focused on just the darkness. Her lips were moving, but no words were escaping. He stepped close to her and held the gun to Antonia's head, she didn't even flinch. "Listen, Bitch. Give me the keys to your car, now." He growled. Aiden turned his body slightly, watching Antonia carefully.
She stared straight ahead, the cold metal of the gun against her head as her lips continued moving. "What the hell is she saying?" The man asked, crouching down slightly to see if he could hear, but she seemed to be in some sort of catatonic state.
"Tex?" Aiden said, and her eyes flicked to his, her lips stopped moving, and the fire was glowing off her face, her attention was on him. "Keys." He wiggled his fingers. She kept her eyes on his, and reached into her pocket. She gripped the keys tightly and pulled them out. She watched Aiden as he lifted his eyebrows, his fingers wiggled again slightly. She pulled her head to the side and threw the keys to him, where he caught them. The man with the gun was surprised by her movement, and turned toward the flying object, giving Antonia enough time to leap forward. She grabbed hold of his legs, wrapping her arms around his knees as he fell face first onto the ground allowing Aiden the opportunity to leap up, land on the man, and grab the gun from his hand. Antonia leapt to her feet just as the other man came running into the room.
She leaned down to Aiden, reached below his coat and grabbed the gun from his holster, lifting it directly at the other man's face. "Move, and I'll kill you." She said, flicking off the safety of the gun. Her voice was angry and serious, and she felt Aiden moving on the ground, she took a step back so that she could keep an eye on him as he pulled the other man's hands behind his back, his knee in his back as he cuffed him.
"Who the hell are you people?" The man on the ground grunted as Aiden lifted him up and pushed him hard against the wall. He walked over to the other man, pulled his arms down, and cuffed him as well, forcing him to the opposite wall, he slid down onto the floor. Antonia still had the gun on him.
"Stand down, Tex." Aiden said, watching her face relax suddenly and her eyes lift to him as she pulled the gun down. He looked to the man on the floor and reached for his gun, as Antonia handed it to him, stumbling back a bit. "Hey, are you okay?"
She swallowed hard and looked into his eyes. "Yeah." She whispered.
"Good job, Partner." He said, watching a weak smile appear on her lips. He turned and looked at the two men. He pulled his badge, showing them each with a pointed look. "I'm Special Agent Aiden Fitzgerald with the FBI. Would either one of you like to explain what you're doing out here in the middle of nowhere, in a cabin where you don't belong, packing heat and taking hostages?" He asked, looking between the two of them, the light of the fire hit the suspects just right, and Aiden instantly realized where he had seen that face, and he already had his answer to his question.