One hour ago

"Oh. Wow." Sam murmured. She stood atop a bluff, looking down at the wide open field and the lake below. The sun had just begun its rise, painting the scattered clouds vibrant shades of purple, pink, and orange. 

The morning air was crisp, the scents of nature floating around her on the late September breeze. Closing her eyes, she inhaled deeply. It had been a long time since she'd had this feeling. Actually, she thought, I've never had this feeling. 

Sure, there were moments of peace here and there. Like when she ran, letting the metronome of her footfalls drown out the thoughts and voices that constantly plagued her mind.

When she trained with the martial arts expert she'd hired years ago. With him, she’d learned how to clear her mind, focusing solely on the physical task at hand. Her sensei taught her how to shove the swirl of insanity from her mind to find focus, stillness, some semblance of peace. This however, this was a whole new level of bliss. 

With two more weeks of this feeling, she might not care what happened when she returned to her company. Might, being the operative word.

Sam took a deep breath, letting it out on a long sigh. If she was being honest, she definitely would care, did care. Maybe, for a short time though, she could take her friend's advice, and just enjoy being a girl on vacation. 

Maybe, for one moment in time, she could just be Sam, girl enjoying life, not Samantha Covington - CEO of a billion dollar company. With another deep breath, she filled her lungs, enjoying the clean, Colorado air. For the first time, Sam was glad that Carla had insisted on this trip. Getting out of New York was going to be good for her. 

A distant rumble drew her back to the moment. Opening her eyes, she glanced around, saw the dark clouds forming over the distant mountains. Sam was a city girl who didn't know a thing about weather in the mountains. What she did know, was that those clouds hadn't been there ten minutes ago, and they weren’t looking friendly as they moved swiftly in her direction. Time to head back to the ranch. Well, she was on the ranch. Time to head back to the cabin.

She had just turned down the small hill, when a loud crack of thunder made her jump. Move a little faster, Sam. Moving at an easy pace, it had taken about forty-five minutes to get here, so she figured if she picked it up, using the downhill slope to her advantage, she should make it back in half an hour, hopefully less. Spurred on by the increasing wind, the rumble of thunder, Sam set her pace at a solid run. 

She was feeling quite proud of her stamina and stability, maneuvering around tree roots and small rocks, keeping a steady pace, breathing evenly. Her chest started to burn from the thin air, almost causing her to slow down, when another crack, this time sounding like it was right over her head, startled her. Her concentration slipped for a brief second, but that was all it took for her toe to snag on an outcropped stone. Before she could catch herself, she was tumbling.

All those years of training paid off, because instinctively, she drew her limbs close, rolling, not flailing. When the ground leveled slightly, she came to a stop, breathing hard, a little stunned. The thunder cracked again, louder this time, and she came out of it, pushed to her hands and knees. As she did, she was thankful the chilly morning had compelled her to wear thick tights and a running jacket. Those had definitely saved her from multiple cuts and abrasions. Sam allowed herself a moment on her hands and knees, then pushed to her feet - and promptly fell back to the earth when her left ankle gave out. One more try, slowly, well done. At least standing was possible. She couldn’t put her full weight on the ankle, but upright had to be better than the ground. 

That was when she felt it. 

One drop on her nose. 

Another on her forehead. 

A couple on the top of her head, and then the windows of heaven opened wide, and the rain was falling hard.  

Stay Calm. Assess.

Sam anxiously scanned her surroundings, looking for something familiar. The fall had disoriented her enough that she didn't see anything she recognized, didn't know which direction was back to the ranch, to her cabin. Taking a couple of steps, she realized she wouldn't be able to get far, even if she did know which direction to take. 

So much for peace, she thought despairingly. In a matter of minutes, her clothes were thoroughly soaked from the cold rain. I need someplace to hunker down. That sounded right, like something one should do in a situation like this. Scanning the surrounding forest, Sam spotted a small outcropping of rocks a few meters away. That looked more promising than anything else she could see, and at the very least, it would shield her from the wind. Slowly, too slowly, Sam made her way to that rock and did just what she'd thought. She hunkered down, pressing her back against it, pulling her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around them, then trying to think of how she was going to get out of this particular predicament.

Within a matter of minutes, she was clenching her jaw to keep her teeth from chattering violently, thinking that when she got out of this, she was going straight back to New York. To hell with what Carla thought. Who did she think she was, sending Samantha Covington to the wilderness? 

In no universe had this been a good idea. 

Get a grip, she thought. Keep it together and find a way out. Her body was shaking violently, her mind reviewing all the things she’d heard about hypothermia. I'd better not die out here. She needed to get back to New York so she could tell Carla exactly how horrendous her “good idea” had been.