Many people had romantic notions about snow and winter but Isolde was not one of them. She missed sunshine and flowers but here is where she was and supposed she much make the best of it.The tinny music from the vehicle’s radio cascaded pleasantly around her. She loved the delicate piano piece as the notes seemed to dance like sunlight on water.<br/><br/>Isolde turned the tag over in her hand and was just able to read Hotel Schiffmeister. She had seen pictures of it in a travel brochure and knew it to be a magnificent place. She was glad she had opted to dress up tonight. She wondered who would be speaking at the conference and looked forward to the scrumptious food they would be sure to serve. As a nurse, she often had rough food with the hunger lines and little else. She wondered if they would have merengue pie. The merengue would be piled up like the drifts of snow along the highway.<br/><br/>Isolde was trying to keep from thinking about the task that Erlind had outlined for her. She knew it would be an undertaking of stealth and cunning, not one to be done without careful planning. At this moment, she had no plan. She turned the Visitor’s tag back over in her hand and then with a shrug, clipped it to the lapel of her coat.<br/><br/>Something had been bugging her about Erlind’s clothing and then it struck her.<br/>“Are you a Nazi officer?” she hissed, recoiling closer to the door.<br/><br/>''Lieutenant Köhler, our travel time is approximately two hours. It could become quite stormy ahead of us, which might slow us down.''<br/>Her fingers gripped the lever to unlatch the car door. The tires rode off the pavement, jostling her away from it and into Erlind. She gasped as she realized that just outside her door was a sheer dropoff.<br/><br/>Maybe he had a reason to go in costume tonight. Maybe he was undercover. She thought frantically. The practical voice in her head said, “Idiot. He is a demon . Did you think he wore a white hat?”<br/><br/>The car slewed across the road toward the mountain on the inside and fishtailed around a hairpin turn.<br/>“Are you trying to kill us?” she snapped at the driver who answered mildly.<br/><br/>“Miss, the snow and fog is making visibility about a 2 and there are sheets of black ice under the newly fallen snow. I will get you there but carefully. Now if you don’t mind. Sit back and try to enjoy the scenery.”<br/><br/>“Tell me more of this evening’s plan,” she said to Erlind. “What am I getting myself into? I had thought to sign this contract over some wine and be done with the matter.”<br/><br/>Before he could answer, the car slid into a snowbank, the only lights were the twin beams from the headlamps.  The only sounds were the whine of spinning tires and snow began to blow into a whiteout.