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Frigid Montana winters are worse than anything Deputy Nora Williams has seen before. New York was horrible in winter, but at least the city helped control it; life went on. In the middle of the wilderness during a cult take over, there’s nothing to stop those caught out in the blizzard from freezing to death. The bunkers she usually sleeps in, scattered around Hope County, are either inaccessible or too cold.
This night, in particular, is truly horrible. The wind is blowing furiously while snow falls so hard the ground is covered in a matter of minutes. As soon as it started, she knew she needed to find somewhere safe to stay. So, she went to the nicest place she could think of in all of Hope County.
It’s not the easiest thing to do, but she has snuck into the Seed Ranch enough times to know how not to get caught. The easiest way being to slip through the sky light in John’s bedroom. Tonight, however, she can feel the ice in her veins, cold hands fumbling with the window latch. She can see her breath, and snow is getting in her eyes. It stings and doesn’t help her see any better through the darkness of night.
Once the window is finally open, she spots John walking through his bedroom doors. He doesn’t see her or seem to notice the cold breeze, yet. She decides to wait and watch. After depositing his pistol in his dresser drawer, he paces the room several times, keeping his eyes on his feet. He only stops to stare out the large window next to his desk that faces his backyard. He looks nervous. His hand absently reaches for his radio, fingers tapping it in indecision.
Nora takes the chance to turn hers off, fearing it could alert him of her presence before she’s ready.
“Deputy-” he says in that usual sing song voice he uses to tease her. “The weather is terribly cold tonight. What will you do? You know, you’d be much safer if only you agreed to join us. We would provide you with everything you need.”
She rolls her eyes, even from her perch she can practically taste the mockery in his voice. He’s trying awfully hard to get a rise out of her, huh? The air is so cold that it takes all her will not to shiver, but she wants to see this game through.
Met with no reply, he stares at his radio for some time before trying again, this time his voice has a more sincere quality to it. “Deputy, you really do need to be careful in a blizzard like this… If anything were to happen…” John stops, whatever he wants to say, he won’t risk it over the radio. He’s still looking out the window, like he thinks if he’s wistful enough she’ll reply.
Is it stupid it makes her smile? Nora hops through the sky window, landing as gracefully as she can behind John. The yelp that escapes him as he spins to face her is worth every freezing second waiting for the right timing. Nora breaks down into a giggling fit at his angry face, only becoming worse as a sheet of red covers his cheeks.
“Are you fucking mad?!” John exclaims, gesturing to the sky light. He is hardly able to mask his embarrassment with anger. “And look how much snow you dragged in!! How long has that been open!?”
Nora forces herself to slow her laughter. “Hey, hey, relax, Johnny. I didn’t expect you to freak out that much.” she still has a smug smile plastered on her face.
“I could have shot you!”
She crosses her arms, giving him a knowing look. “You don’t have your gun on you.”
Her comment intrigues him, switching from anger to curiosity in an instant. “So, you were watching me then?”
“Maybe.”
“You must have heard what I said.” John takes a predatory step toward her, mischief filling his sparkling eyes. “Can I assume you’re here to take me up on that offer?”
She snorts at him “As if.” He looks dejected, eyebrows furrowing together. He’s such a pout. She covers the gap between them, grabbing a handful of his shirt. She can feel the warmth radiating off of him. His hands twitch at his sides, likely reeling to touch her, but instead he watches intently, letting her decide how to approach this. “I could use someone to keep me warm. But maybe you should finish that last sentence first, huh?”
“You’re absolutely frigid, my dear.” John cradles her face in his hands. She leans into the touch, her fight disappearing quickly. “Let me take care of you, hm?”
“That doesn’t answer my question, John.” It’s teasing, but her voice sounds so soft and an unmenacing. She wraps her arms around his waist to bring him closer, force the admission out of him. Is it so wrong to want to hear adoring words from her enemy?
He pauses, rubbing his thumb over her cheek before answering. “Don’t you know, Nora?”
When she looks up at him, he has a softness in his eyes and that crooked smile she loves so much. There’s a sadness in her that she’s sure they both feel, knowing they were still on opposite sides of the war. She doesn’t know how this will end, but in the moment, she couldn’t be more content. For tonight at least they could be on the same side.
“Don’t you know what you mean to me?”