“I’m not going to hurt you,” he said gently. “You’re freezing.”
He removed his jacket, placed it on the snow, and stepped back.
Then he opened the trunk, took out a thermos and some food, and set them down beside the jacket without coming any closer.
The girl trembled violently. The boy shielded her, but the cold was stronger than their suspicion. Slowly, cautiously, they moved forward—one step at a time.
Inside the car, warmth wrapped around them.
The stranger turned on the heater and sat quietly, not pressing them with questions, as if afraid to shatter the fragile trust forming between them.
“A few weeks ago, I lost my family. An accident. My wife and my two children… they didn’t survive.”
His voice was steady, but his hands trembled on the steering wheel.
“Every day since then, I’ve asked God why I was the one left behind.
And tonight…” He glanced at them in the rearview mirror. “Tonight, I think I have my answer.”
The car began to move again.
Behind them, the forest faded into darkness—no longer as terrifying as it had been just moments before.
