ThunderSnow

CHAPTER FOURTEEN: Whiteout

The drive to Lyn's hometown was two-and-a-half hours. The time flew by quickly as they laughed and talked. Lyn told stories of her childhood, pointing out landmarks along the way.

Lyn was surprised at how relaxed and comfortable Eli seemed. It didn't seem to bother him in the least that he was crammed into the small, cloth-covered passenger seat of a car that most likely cost less than the watch on his wrist.

As they neared her hometown, they passed a large sign that read "Welcome to the Lakes Area Vacationland."

Eli gestured toward the sign. "I take it there are a lot of lakes around here."

Lyn nodded. "More lakes than land.  There are almost 500 in this area alone.  That 'Land of 10,000 lakes' thing?  That's just good old 'Minnesota nice' humility.  It's a generous understatement."

Eli's eyes widened. "Seriously?"

"Yep. If you see it from the air, you wonder how we even drive down here." She waved her hand back and forth, gesturing to both sides of the car. "It's hard to tell because the roads are lined with so many trees, but behind the mask of this forest, there are lakes... and more lakes... and more lakes."

"It must be a beautiful place to grow up," Eli said as he glanced back out the window.

Lyn nodded. "It was," she said softly. "I still love coming back up here sometimes, just to visit and bring back the memories. I was lucky to spend my childhood in such a beautiful place, surrounded by nature. I practically grew up in the woods and on the water."

Just outside of the city limits, she pulled off the highway, taking him on the narrow country roads that wound around the lakes. The drive was a stunning winter wonderland. Towering evergreen trees hugged close to the road, their heavy, snow-covered branches hanging overhead, creating a magical canopy. The road curved gently, rising and falling over low hills and weaving as it followed the shorelines of lake after lake. Everything was a brilliant white, but not quite as brilliant as Lyn's smile as the road suddenly crested, then dipped down into an idyllic little town nestled among the pines and lakes.

"I know this is hard to believe because right now, in winter, it looks like a ghost town around here, but in the summer, this place is hopping. It is wall-to-wall tourists. You can't even drive down the street. In the winter, though, it's mainly just the locals. As fun as the summers were, and as much as I prefer summer weather, I always loved the stillness of winter when it was just us locals in our peaceful little town."

Eli nodded appreciatively as he looked out the window. Little was an apt description, but the town was incredibly charming. There was one main road, without a single stoplight. The street was lined on both sides with a variety of cozy and inviting shops. Reading the signs, it was obvious that Lyn's description was accurate; this was clearly a tourist destination. The artfully decorated storefronts advertised a variety of boutiques, gift and souvenir shops, cozy cafés, and a dizzying array of specialty stores clearly geared toward the vacation set, not small town locals.

As they reached the edge of town, he noticed a larger building that had several cars parked out front. A large sign read 'Ye Olde Pickle Factory'. Eli laughed, jerking his thumb toward the sign out his window.

"A pickle factory?" he asked, his eyebrow arching. "That's a bit surprising."

Lyn's jaw clenched and her mouth set into a thin line. "Oh. That's the local bar. It's kind of a town joke. They call it the pickle factory because that's where you go to get 'pickled'."

She glanced over her shoulder as she made a U-turn, returning down the main road on the other side of the street, then looked back over at Eli.

"My dad spent a lot of time in there. I've been a few times with friends, but I tend to avoid it." She shrugged, a small, sad smile barely curving her mouth.