Publisher's Synopsis
The temperature was nine degrees. Ella had run out of her house at midnight, with no coat on and barefoot in the cold snowy weather, looking for somewhere to hide. She ducked on the other side of some steps where she couldn't be seen. She lay there on the cold ground, hiding behind the steps, scared and cold and shaking as she lay there. Then she raised up to see if she could see him. There he was! She ducked back down, frightened to death, thinking that he might hear her breathing. She covered her mouth with her hand, scared that she might scream out unexpectedly. He walked back and forth up the alley then he was gone. She sat up, wondering if she should go knock on the neighbor's door and ask for help. No, she couldn't, then everybody in the neighborhood would know about it in the morning. Suddenly she heard a car. It was him looking for her then she eased back down, laying still, hoping that he didn't notice her. He slowly drove down the alley, looking from side to side to see if he could see her. Then he pulled off Ella, got up, and run to the alley to see which way that he went, then she ran back to the house to get her shoes, coat and purse, not realizing how long that she was there. She heard the door close downstairs. It was him. Her heart started pounding and beating faster than before. He called her name, "Ella, where your ass at?"
