Bear Temptations Read Free Page A

of the door, and my eye caught on the rectangular lantern with a packet of matches tucked neatly under it. Whew! One stroke of luck, at least, since I didn’t bring matches.
    Lighting a match against the wind was harder than I thought it’d be, and after a minute’s struggle, I finally got the lantern going and was able to save the last of the flashlight’s batteries. I held the lantern high above my head and took a step towards the door, trying the doorknob. To my delight, it was unlocked, so I pushed the door open and in I went.

Chapter 5

    As I stepped into the cabin, I quickly discovered that the light switches didn’t work and that the places was a totally dusty and dirty mess. I guess no one lives here after all. There were twigs and leaves everywhere and, fortunately for me, several more lanterns. Rapidly going and lighting each one, the room filled with light. There wasn’t much in the cabin for me to enjoy—it was certainly no home, and the aging, uncared for wooden walls and floors were evidence of that. And sadly, there was no electricity for me to charge my phone. But at least it was a roof over my head for the night until I could set off and try to find someone for help in the morning.
    Though there wasn’t much in the cabin, I decided to explore it nonetheless. The main living area had a small two-person wooden table (it looked handmade) and two chairs; there wasn’t even a couch for me to sit on. The kitchen was well-stocked with rusty pots, pans, and cutlery. There was a wood stove and, I was surprised to see, an oil refrigerator. Quickly opening it to see what I’d find, I discovered an assortment of berries, mushrooms, fish, and various cuts of meat that I couldn’t identify. In a cupboard, I found seeds and nuts. Yes, snacks! Fuck yes, I won’t starve if I’m stranded here for days, at least.
    Setting off into the next room, there was a single cot and one pair of jeans and a red plaid shirt hung up to dry, presumably. To my dismay, there wasn’t a bathroom or shower. Probably an outhouse around here somewhere.
    Concluding my search around this tiny, mostly empty house, I returned to the living room and sat cross-legged on the floor. My stomach was alerting me that I hadn’t eaten since breakfast and, remembering the sandwich in my tote bag, I pulled it out along with my vodka. Nothing to chase it with, but better than nothing.
    Then, thinking better of it, I retrieved the berries from the fridge—chewing on berries after a swig will certainly taste better than swallowing air.
    The first few swigs of vodka went down rough, though it was certainly welcome after the weird day I was just finishing. I still wasn’t able to wrap my head around what had happened out there in the woods. Now, with my stomach filling up from my tuna sandwich and my body thoroughly being heated thanks to the vodka (and my sister’s slightly small cardigan that was snugly wrapped around me now), I finally was able to indulge in thinking and reflecting over what the hell happened tonight.
    I racked my brains to figure out if my parents had told me anything out of the ordinary about Mary’s new boyfriend. They’d apparently met in a bar just a couple of weeks ago and Brad had immediately taken a liking to my sister. My mom thought he was normal enough, but did find it weird how much they were glued to each other those first two weeks and how quickly they’d decided to go on vacation together (even if it was just camping). Especially since my sister was only 19 and Brad apparently constantly had a flock of cheerleaders surrounding him.
    She certainly didn’t tell me about him—I only just found out she even had a boyfriend when I came back home to discover she was missing! Social media and the Internet told me everything I needed to know about him though and he seemed normal enough, but now I can’t help but wonder if he’s involved in some sort of weird gang or cult? This obviously didn’t help me with