Chapter 24

Instantly, all my skills as a winter driver were put to the test. I'm sure that most of my reactions were automatic responses to the situation unfolding in front of me. I turned the wheel one way to avoid a collision and then instantly turned it the opposite way to prevent going into a spin. Most of what I was doing was watching the scene unfold before me, as the ice underneath the vehicle was dictating most of the direction of travel.

When I was a young driver, I used to put my car into spins in the winter in order to learn all I could as to how to properly handle the slippery roads. Of course, I did this in areas where there was little possibility of damaging property or injuring other people.

I eventually become confident of my ability to drive on slippery surfaces and had decided to show-off when I was out on a country road with another couple. I put the car into a spin and was just about to pull it out again when a slope in the road, or some other condition, pulled my vehicle into the ditch. I sat by helplessly as the car buried itself into a snow bank. All though we tried, there was no possibility of driving or pushing the car out of its final resting place.

Of course, my passengers were mad at me and had given me a good scolding. I was embarrassed because I had never gone off the road before in all my adventures. Fortunately for all of us, a guy in a jeep came by and pulled us out. I have since learned that guys in jeeps love to pull other guys, especially ones with beautiful girls in the car, out of ditches. I have done the same, when the situation has presented itself.

The car in front of me had spun to the right, so I attempted to move to the left to avoid a collision. My thinking at the time was that I might be able to pick up some traction on the gravel shoulder and regain control of my vehicle. That action turned out to be a big mistake as the slope of the road was just enough to pull my vehicle into the ditch. Before I knew it, we were pointed down and off the main road.

Fortunately, the seatbelts restrained us and the air bags did not go off. I immediately leaned over to make sure that Anna was free of any injuries.

"You don't drive much in winter?" she asked.

I didn't know how to respond. Here I was, the supposed white knight, and I couldn't even get her safely to my house. I saw a little smile on her face and figured that she was just toying with me.

"Are you ok? I asked with a chuckle.

"I am just fine," she replied. "We also have winter in Russia."

"I'm not sure what happened. I'm usually a good driver in these conditions."

"I am glad we are fine," Anna responded with a smile.

I immediately called for a tow. I tried a couple times to move the vehicle, but it just wasn't possible to get any traction with everything covered in ice. The car in front of me was also in the ditch about a hundred feet away. From what I could tell, the driver appeared to be moving around and in satisfactory condition.

At least we were comfortable as we waited for the tow truck. It eventually became so warm that I decided to turn the vehicle off. When I tried to start it later, it wouldn't start. The highway maintenance trucks came down the road about fifteen minutes after we had gone into the ditch. They applied salt to the surface and it appeared that after that, the traffic seemed to be doing just fine. They would wiz by and smile at the silly folks who were stranded along the side of the road. We could see at least three other cars in the same situation as us from our resting spot. It seemed that conditions had been just right to enable the water to freeze instantly, covering everything with a slippery surface.

Evidently I had called first, because the rescue truck stopped in front of me before any of the other stranded folks. He lowered a cable down to my vehicle and slowly winched me up onto the shoulder. Once my vehicle was on the road, he proceeded to hook me up for the tow.

"Where should I take you?" He asked.

He appeared to be about my age. He wore a stocking cap that covered a head of unruly hair. His moustache drooped down the sides of his mouth. His face contained several dark smudges, probably from one of the cars he had been working on. He looked every bit the part of your typical tow truck man.

"I only live a couple miles away. Would you be able to take us there?

"Just hop in the truck and we will be on our way." He appeared to be a man of few words.

I helped Anna up the high step on the side of the vehicle. The driver moved some items on the seat to make room for her. Once we were both safely secured, he proceeded to move back onto the highway.

The salt had done its job and the road was now much safer to drive on. He took the next exit and then slowed down for the stop sign. We all cringed as we felt the large truck sliding through the intersection. It became immediately clear that the side roads were still slippery.

We slowly made our way onto the country road that would take us back home. I could tell that the driver was putting a great deal of effort into keeping his rig on the road. The surface we were travelling was only two lanes wide and it sloped off toward the ditch. We passed a gauntlet of cars in which the tail ends of the four vehicles could be seen poking up in the air.

"Looks like you have your work cut out for you today," I commented to the driver.

"Looks that way," he responded.

When we came up to the next intersection, where we would need to turn left, I again felt us sliding as we rounded the corner. I could see relief on the driver's face as we moved onto a wider, four lane highway. The rest of the trip, we had good traction until we came to our side street. The driver was barely able to back the Rover up to the door of my garage. He had to make several attempts to maneuver it into the proper position. I paid the fellow and he headed off to help some other poor soul.

"Stay safe," I yelled as he was getting back into the cab.

"I'll try," he commented. I could see concern written on his weathered face.

I looked over at Anna. She was staring at my house.

"This is yours?" she asked.

"Mine and the banks," I responded.

"I love it. It is beautiful."

"You are the one that is beautiful," I replied.

I put my arms around her and pulled her to me.

"This is not exactly the way I intended to bring you home, but here we are."

"I am pleased," the love of my life responded.

I gathered up her bags and headed for the door. Taking a look at why my vehicle wouldn't start would need to wait for another time.

I unlocked the door and allowed Anna to walk through. It was fun to watch the look on her face.

"Is this really yours? She asked incredulously.

"It's mine I responded."

"It's amazing," she said. It was easy to see that she meant it.

"Come on, I'll show you to your room." I took her down the hallway to the master bedroom that looked out over the pond. I had moved into the spare bedroom in anticipation of her arrival. I had also ordered a more feminine comforter for her bed.

Her arms were around my neck and her lips pressing against mine before I could respond.

"Thank you Clint," she said. "It is wonderful."

I placed the bags in the corner and came back to hold her tight.

"You are the one who is so beautiful," I said. "You make this entire house so much more of a home."

Anna told me that she was tired after the long flight. She asked if she could take a short nap. How could I refuse? I know everyone has their own way of dealing with jetlag. If it was me, I would have tried to stay awake until it was time to go to bed. I always try to get into the new time schedule as quickly as possible. I sat and watched as she slept. She looked so peaceful and serene. I finally realized I had some jobs that needed to get done, so I got up and went outside to begin figuring out why my vehicle wouldn't start.

I checked the battery and found that it was good. I got down on the ground and looked around under the engine. It appeared that one of the wires to the starter had come loose. Upon further examination, I could see that the wire had been cut. I figured it must have caught on something as I was going into the ditch.