She dropped the blanket for a moment. She held her hand out for Max, cupped it the way Mr. Cortland had but Max (or was it Colin) didn’t respond. She picked his foot up and put it into her cupped hand and lifted him onto Comet’s back. She pulled the blanket up and rested it in front of him. And then, as there was no stirrup to hold on to, hoisted herself up, one hand on the blanket, as if it was almost the beginning of a somersault for life, and took her place on Comet’s back in front of “the person who used to be Max.”

She took his hands—they were so cold—and wrapped them around her waist. She pulled the blanket up and tried to wrap it around them. She grabbed the reins. She made that noise, that funny noise that Mr. Cortland made with his tongue, and as if the horse knew exactly where she was going, Comet turned around and started to race back again.

The wind was blowing against them now, or rather the horse was running against the wind which was strong, brisk, and racing as fast as Comet was, as if it was trying to push them back, back into the water. The snowfall was fierce, as well, and furious, as if it was coming down in sheets. It was so cold. It felt like there were tentacles of ice wrapping around them. Tess looked down and thought she saw creatures rising up from the snow like an arctic boa constrictor that had somehow been matched with an octopus, with icy coils for arms that were trying to wrap them and weaving their way up Comet’s legs. Tess watched as the arms tried to wrap them and squeeze them, as if they were trying to get them to breathe the very air out of them, squeezing harder even, as if they were trying to get them to shoot up to space.

Tess made that noise again, that clicking noise that Mr. Cortland made with his tongue, and kicked Comet gently with her heels. Comet ran faster still, running past the reach of the first creatures whose arms were like tentacles of ice, racing faster and faster still. And finally, so fast that her pace alone out-distanced the cold and Tess felt the warmth of Comet safely guiding them on.

She stroked the horse’s mane and whispered in her ear. “Thank you.” And then she said to Max, even though she didn’t know if he could hear her, “Hold onto me, please. Hold onto me.” She wasn’t sure, but she thought she felt his arms tighten around her.