The Ice King
an excerpt

Nell struck another match. The clear, bright flame formed a perfect teardrop at the tip of the match for just a moment, then began to work its way down the wood, leaving the matchhead blackened in its wake. A slight wind made the flame flicker, and Nell angled the match to keep the flame blowing toward the burned end.
A car's tires crunched in the snow nearby, but Nell didn't turn around. Her attention was on the flame.
"I think that's Dad's car coming," Jack said.
Nell looked up. The muddy blue car making its way toward them looked familiar, but she wasn't sure until it came close enough that she could see her father's dark hair and trademark baseball cap. A woman sat beside him in the passenger seat. Even at a distance she looked stylish; her blond hair fell perfectly around her shoulders and her clothing was smoothly tailored to her slim figure. She looked to be in her late 20s.
The flame reached Nell's fingers and she dropped the match and swore. The flame fizzled out in the snow and a thin curl of smoke rose and dissipated into the cold air. The spent match joined a dozen or so others that lay haphazardly around Nell's feet.
Jack pushed a button on the stopwatch. "Not bad, one minute thirteen seconds."
"You know it doesn't count if I drop it." Nell watched as the blue car slowed and came to a stop next to the curb a few feet from where they were standing. She put the box of matches away in her backpack and sighed. "It's showtime."
She greeted her father with a bright smile and held her hand out to the woman who emerged from the passenger side. "You must be Cindy."
Her initial estimate of Cindy's age was probably off, Nell realized; up close she looked like she was in her early 30s. Nell's father hadn't actually told them how old Cindy was. He hadn't told them much about her at all, except that she was a paralegal for Smithtown's only law firm and her father's family owned half the businesses in town. Which wasn't many. She didn't have any children of her own, which was a relief; the thought of small stepsiblings made Nell shudder.
Cindy smiled coolly and put her sunglasses in her pocket. "Your father has told me so much about you two. I'm glad to finally meet you."
Finally? Nell and Jack exchanged an amused look. It had been less than six months since their dad had moved up here. Nell kept her mouth shut and helped him put their bags in the car.
"I hope the cold isn't too bad for you," he said as he started the car and drove away from the bus station. "At least here you'll get a white Christmas, right?"
"We get those in Michigan too, you know." Nell clamped her teeth together before she could say anything more sarcastic. She'd promised her mother: be friendly, keep a positive attitude, back in time for New Year's and no more visits to the middle of nowhere until summer, at least.
Cindy laughed, a bit unpleasantly, Nell thought. "I think you'll find things a bit different up here in northern Alberta."
Nell looked at Jack and saw that he was watching Cindy thoughtfully. He seemed to have the same reaction Nell did: shouldn't she be trying to win us over? They'd expected effusive welcomes, but Cindy's attitude was off-putting. Their father, as usual, said little. He sat awkwardly in the driver's seat and let Cindy do most of the talking. He seemed to think conversation was women's work. Jack didn't show much sign of what he was thinking, but Nell expected they'd talk later. They usually did.
The wind whistled outside and blew great gusts of snow into the air. Nell didn't want to admit it, but this Canadian winter was beyond anything she'd seen before. The ice crystals shone like diamonds on the snow-packed road, and even the warmth from the car's heater couldn't drive away the chill. It was early in the afternoon, but the sun was already setting. Nell stared off into the distance at the pine trees and occasional houses they passed, and the conversation lapsed into silence. She began to doze, watching patterns form in the swirling snow.
In the distance, the wind-blown snow seemed to form itself into a dark shape that moved with them as the car traveled across the empty landscape. Nell squinted and saw it distinctly for just a moment: a figure in the shape of a man, 20 feet tall, made out of blowing snow, leaping alongside the car and matching their speed. She gasped and sat upright and the figure disappeared.
"What's up?" Jack asked.
Nell shook her head. "Nothing."