“It is a disgrace,” Eugenius repeated, angrily. “We will all be disgraced by her!”

“Father,” Dutov said, going to the table and taking his seat, “he was American. He would not know our customs. Come, sit down and let us eat. Katrina is… Katrina. Getting angry at a cat for preening is… silly.”

“Father, I’m sorry,” Katrina said, shooting an angry look at her brother. “I would have died in the snow if I had not ridden with him. And I kept even my scarf on. We did nothing but drive back here. And now… he is gone. Nothing has happened, nothing will.”

“We must marry her off,” Mother Lenka said, cackling. “Or sell her to town. I think she’d be happier in town anyway.”

“Shut your fool old mouth,” Eugenius said, pushing Katrina towards the kitchen and taking his place at the table. “Let us give thanks that we have food for the winter and eat. This matter is closed.”

The snow on the road was getting thicker and there were hidden patches of ice. Mike considered that fact as he looked up the road in the direction the man had pointed. The road, just beyond the farms, led up a narrow defile, twisting back and forth in parallel with a large, ice-choked stream. Fortunately, if he went off the road it probably wouldn’t kill him and even in this weather he should be able to walk up to Alerrso or whatever. There was a narrow side road that went up the mountain to the east, but he was pretty sure that went nowhere and, given the conditions, he was in no mood to go exploring.

He engaged the transmission and headed for the first switchback, carefully. Normally, with a slope this steep, the only way to make it would be to get a run-up on the flats. But with the twists he was just going to have to hope the traction control and snow tires could give him some purchase.

The road headed upwards at about a six-degree incline, then bent sharply right. He made the turn, fishtailing only slightly but feeling the traction control reduce the power to the wheels as he slid.