Cold Mornings

Mariza pulled her red hoodie tighter as she stared out the frosted window. Snow covered everything outside their cabin like a thick white blanket. She couldn't see the end of the forest.

"You're blocking the light," Aiden said from behind her.

Mariza didn't turn around. "There's barely any light to block."

Aiden moved to the other window, her boots making soft sounds on the wooden floor. She wore dark clothes that matched her serious expression. Both girls had been living here for three months now, ever since their parents decided they should be married when they grew up.

"I'm going hunting," Mariza announced, grabbing her shotgun from beside the door.

"Fine," Aiden replied, not looking up from sharpening her knife.

Mariza stepped outside into the cold air. The snow crunched under her black sneakers. She and Aiden were both hunters, both stubborn, both tired of this arrangement. They slept in separate rooms and barely talked.

She headed toward the trees, ready for another day of avoiding her future wife.

Unexpected Visitor

Mariza stepped through the deep snow, her shotgun heavy in her hands. The forest was silent except for the crunch of her sneakers. She had been walking for an hour, but no deer tracks appeared anywhere.

A sharp bark echoed through the trees. Mariza stopped and listened. The sound came again, closer this time.

A brown and white dog burst through a cluster of pine trees, its tongue hanging out. The animal looked thin and tired. Snow clung to its fur.

"Where did you come from?" Mariza whispered.

The dog wagged its tail and trotted toward her. A red collar hung around its neck with a small metal tag. Mariza knelt down and read the name: "Scout."

Her phone buzzed in her pocket. She pulled it out and saw a text message from an unknown number: "Missing dog in woods near old cabin. Brown and white. Reward offered."

Mariza looked at Scout, then back at her phone. Someone was looking for this dog. But returning Scout would mean meeting strangers, and she wasn't supposed to leave the area around their cabin.

Scout whined softly and pressed against her leg.