Daughter of a hard-working father who died at war and a dedicated mother who died of illness, Tina only has her younger brothers to call a family. She has no grandparents, uncles, aunts or cousins. Or at least none she knows of. No, all she has are her brothers. And all they have is her.
The three of them manage to survive by selling herbs and medicine to those who need it and coupling it with small animals they manage to catch. Life is rough, but it's not something impossible to do. It's synonym of moderation and preparation, that’s all. Until a sad day of winter, a day that, for some reason, just makes your heart ache a little, when the younger of those brothers never comes back from the hunt. Tina and Tony immediately notice, but the heavy snow stops them from being able to go search for their brother. It would be suicide to try and find him right now. The next day, when the snow has melted a little, they're able to walk to the trail they leave small traps on. But no sign of their brother. The fresh snow has covered any footprint he could’ve left. A kingfisher catches Tina's attention when he flies back to a branch nearby, a small fish in its beak. With such temperature they've been having, no lake or water should be free from ice. She glances and notices some broken ice, but she doesn't look further, too scared to slip and fall into the freezing water. Only mere meters away, on the other side of the lake, another hole. And floating under the glass, the lifeless body of Tina and Tony's brother, the poor boy meeting a tragic end after losing his footing.
The sun continues his course, and when the shadows of the trees grow bigger, Tina walks back to her brother, a chill running down her spine. There had always been a rumor surrounding these woods after nightfall. It was less scary during the day, which was why the kids hunted in these parts. But being out so late was not reassuring, especially with the disappearance of their brother so fresh in their hearts.
