Wrenching free of Alf’s grip, Blix rolled onto her side. Her legs were gone. And her sleeves and all their supplies. And the medicine! Her skin was already starting to break down. What was she supposed to do without antibiotics? Or her toothbrush? Gross!

“We could go back for supplies…” A butterfly-soft hand lit on her shoulder. “I could—”

She shook him off, and then, to prove she wasn’t helpless, she scooted a full ten feet across the rough pavement and sat facing away from him at the edge of the road.

“I don’t mind carrying you. We can still—”

“Stop.” The tremor in her voice made her want to puke. “Please, I need some time to think.”

Silence. She couldn’t even hear him breathing now. Like he thought she was so fragile even his breath would blow her away.

Which made her even more angry. She wasn’t a baby to be carried around and tucked into bed at night. No way would she let that happen. But even if she didn’t let him carry her, he would still baby her. He couldn’t seem to help himself. And it was driving her crazy.

“I can’t do this,” she finally said. “This isn’t me.”

“Of course, you can.” He crept up behind her and crouched timidly beside her. “I know nothing makes any sense, but we’ll figure it out. Once we have a few more puzzle pieces to work with, we’ll piece together a plan. For now, all we have to think about is getting through the night. We’ll worry about everything else tomorrow.”

Hot molten lava surged into her brain. How could anyone be so clueless? She wanted to punch him, to scream, but the dust had taken that away from her too. She couldn’t do anything. She was completely out of options. “Alf, please…” She had to work to keep her voice steady. “I need some time, okay? Alone. I just need some time.”

“Sure. Just let me get you up this slope.” His voice was way too soft. “Just in case… you know.”

“No.” She kept her voice flat and emotionless. “You are not going to carry me, or protect me, or take care of me in any way. Just go. Please. I’m not mad; I just need you to leave me alone.”

She closed her eyes and waited.

Eventually he stood and started walking. He was slower than a turtle and was probably looking back at her with those tragic puppy-dog eyes, but eventually his footsteps faded into the distance.

Finally. She breathed a sigh of relief, and just like that, she knew what she needed to do. Using her hand and left elbow, she scooted herself up the embankment and pushed her way through the scratchy underbrush.

Darkness closed around her as she crawled deeper and deeper into the forest. Finally, she found what she was looking for, a huge evergreen with layers of thick branches cascading to the ground like a Victorian ball gown. Squirming under the branches, she pushed her way into a dry, twenty-inch-high igloo, complete with a thick mattress of insulating needles.

She broke off the lowest branches and piled them around the edges for even more insulation. Then, pushing back out into the night, she bulldozed wet needles and leaves until the entire tree was surrounded by a two-foot wind break.

It had taken a lot longer than she’d intended, but Alf wouldn’t mind once he saw what she’d done. She headed back to the road, cold and wet and disgustingly filthy, but she couldn’t wait to see Alf’s face when she showed him their new shelter. If he insisted, she’d even let him carry her. Then, after a good nights sleep, they could take their time and figure out how to find water and food and maybe she could even create some kind of sling to make it easier for him to carry her.

But when she finally reached the road, Alf was nowhere to be seen. Had he come back while she’d been working? Surely he would have heard all the snapping limbs. But what if he walked past her? Stupid Alf. He could have at least called out her name. It’s not like she’d been that far away.

She sat on the side of the road, huddled against the chill of the mist. Waiting.

Ten more minutes, she told herself. And then, ten more minutes. Twenty.

Slowly, the cold penetrated deep into her gut, numbing her from the inside out.

“Alf?” she shouted at the top of her lungs. “Alf!”

But he was gone. Probably for good.