An aspiring novelist opens her mind to more than just a reawakening of creativity when she escapes the city to attend a writing retreat in a small mountain town. °°° °°° °°° Alexandra Stone and five other writers from across the country and abroad flee to the secluded and acclaimed Strykowski Family cabin. Hoping to purge the words within her that have taken a year to come out, Lex seeks comfort and support at the retreat surrounded by like-minded peers within the snow-dappled woods. After a childish dare ignites a chain of events that both mystify and frighten her, she soon comes to doubt whether her scintillating dreams and spine-chilling nightmares truly are just bizarre affectations of a bruised and hungry mind. °°° °°° °°° This is my submission for the Open Novella Contest 2020 -- Prompts #49 and #15 **This story is strictly for 18+ readers. You have been warned.**