Sloan, a diner waitress, is broke. After recent legal troubles, she is overdrawn, deep in credit-card debt, and two weeks behind on rent. She shares an apartment with her roommate, Blair, and Blair’s boyfriend, Griff. Disturbed by the couple’s frequent loud intimacy, Sloan lies in bed researching ways to earn money online until she discovers OnlyFans.

Blair bursts in without knocking and demands the overdue rent. She gives Sloan an ultimatum: pay by tomorrow or vacate immediately. Sloan must choose whether to confront Blair (Chapter 2) or reassure her (Chapter 4), the first choice in the novel.

Sloan asserts her tenant rights, declaring that Blair can’t evict her with a day’s notice. Blair retaliates by hurling armfuls of Sloan’s clothing out the window. When Sloan blocks the dresser, Blair summons Griff, a massive man whose footsteps shake the floor. Terrified, Sloan agrees to leave.

Sloan gathers her scattered belongings from the snow-covered sidewalk. A handsome stranger retrieves one of her bracelets but claims it under “finders-keepers” rules. She constructs a makeshift shelter in the adjacent alley. A friendly orange cat approaches, but when Sloan explains that she has nothing to offer, it suddenly attacks, howling and clawing at her leg and hair. Sloan barely escapes and hides behind trash cans until the animal departs; she then returns to her shelter and sleeps fitfully. This is the first ending and the last of the “stand up to Blair” endings (3).

Sloan reassures Blair that she will have the rent money tomorrow. After Blair leaves, Sloan’s phone rings. Avery, an old friend, offers a high-paying waitressing job for that evening, enough for two months’ rent. The job is at Peyton’s Peak, a remote mountain two hours away populated by wealthy, eccentric residents, where GPS doesn’t function. Avery offers written directions. Sloan lacks transportation but could borrow Blair’s car. Despite the attractive pay, her instincts warn against it. She must decide whether to take the job (Chapter 7) or decline (Chapter 5).

Sloan tells Avery that the job sounds too suspicious and declines. Avery emphasizes the pay and Sloan’s desperation, but Sloan holds firm. After hanging up, she briefly questions her decision.

Sloan decides against unnecessary risks, confident that she will find rent money through other means. She dismisses Blair’s eviction threat and spends the evening reading. Tomorrow, she plans to investigate OnlyFans, mistakenly assuming that it involves HVAC equipment and artisanal fans. This is the second ending and the last of the “decline the job” endings (12).

Sloan accepts the job and borrows Blair’s car after explaining that the pay will cover rent. Blair reluctantly agrees but threatens severe consequences if the vehicle is damaged. Outside, a thin cat emerges from the alley, nuzzling Sloan’s leg and seeking food. She must decide whether to stop and feed it (Chapter 8) or leave immediately to stay on schedule (Chapter 9).

Sloan retrieves leftover kung pao chicken and feeds the hungry cat, who eats eagerly and affectionately rubs against her. She departs for the job.

Sloan drives Blair’s silver Audi toward Peyton’s Peak, carrying Avery’s written directions for when GPS fails. The roads grow increasingly empty. After an hour, she encounters a male hitchhiker who is underdressed for the cold, with wild hair and a bushy beard. She must choose whether to stop (Chapter 10) or keep driving (Chapter 14).

Sloan stops for the hitchhiker, Jasper, a 50-year-old man who has waited two hours in the cold. He’s heading to a friend’s cabin near the base of Peyton’s Peak. During the drive, he reveals that his wife, Lorna, recently died. Now, he travels constantly, carrying her ashes so that she can experience the country posthumously. After 20 minutes, Jasper points out a dark, overgrown turnoff leading to the cabin and asks for a ride down the narrow path. Sloan senses that going down that road would be dangerous and must decide whether to drive him to the cabin (Chapter 12) or drop him off at the turnoff (Chapter 11).

Sloan declines to drive further, citing her schedule. Jasper appears disappointed but understanding. He sits motionless, staring at her with an unsettling expression. When she urges him to leave, he suddenly wraps his hands around her throat and strangles her until she loses consciousness. Sloan dies regretting that she picked him up. This is the third ending and the last of the “drop off the hitchhiker” endings (26).

Sloan agrees to drive Jasper to the cabin, navigating the dark, narrow path slowly. They reach a clearing with a cabin inside. Jasper thanks her and invites her in for tea. Noting that she has made good time, Sloan hesitates. She must decide whether to go inside (Chapter 13) or continue up the mountain (Chapter 11).

Sloan accepts the invitation. Outside the car, she notices deep scratches along the doors from overhanging branches. The cabin appears abandoned and deteriorating; it has damaged furniture, dusty dolls, a rusted stove, and firewood topped with an ax by the fireplace. When Sloan mentions leaving, Jasper grabs the ax and charges at her. She flees to the car, but he catches up. He dents the passenger door and then delivers a fatal blow to her chest. Sloan dies regretting that she got out of the car. This is the fourth ending and the last of the “stop for the hitchhiker” endings (23).

Sloan drives past the hitchhiker and goes up the mountain. Her GPS fails as predicted, leaving only Avery’s directions. After 15 minutes on the narrow, dangerous road, she reaches a fork not mentioned in the directions and has no cell service to call Avery. The left path curves inward with uncleared snow, suggesting little recent traffic. The right path narrows sharply with prominent warning signs. She must choose left (Chapter 15) or right (Chapter 32).

Sloan takes the left path to avoid the warnings. The road grows treacherous, and Avery’s directions no longer match the surroundings. The road is too narrow to turn around, so Sloan tries to reverse out. The car gets stuck. She opens the door to clear out some snow from the front of the car, but a distant wolf howl gives her pause. She must decide whether to get out and risk an animal attack (Chapter 17) or stay inside and try not to freeze despite low fuel reserves (Chapter 16).

Sloan stays inside, running minimal heat to conserve fuel. After about an hour, the gas runs out, and the temperature plummets. Sloan tries to get out, but the door is frozen shut. At around two o’clock in the morning, she feels a sudden, intense warmth and removes her coat. She vaguely recalls that undressing is a final stage of hypothermia, in which exhausted blood vessels create a false sensation of heat. Believing that she will wake safely at dawn, she closes her eyes and freezes to death. This is the fifth ending and the last of the “stay in the car” endings (37).

Sloan exits to dig out the snow. Loud, ground-shaking thumps approach from behind. She finds a large, terrifying creature with white fur, yellow fangs, and dark eyes. Her heart races, and everything goes black.

Sloan regains consciousness on a cave floor near a fire. Behind her, the hitchhiker from earlier, Jasper, lies bound and gagged, while her own hands remain free. After she removes his gag, he urgently demands that she untie him so that they can escape before the creature returns. Sloan finds it suspicious that only he was restrained. She must decide whether to free him (Chapter 19) or leave the bonds in place (Chapter 20).

Sloan unties Jasper, and he frees his own ankles. Moving sluggishly, he leads her into a dark tunnel and produces a lighter. He calls her by her name, which she never gave him. He smiles, extinguishes the flame, and strangles her to death. Sloan dies regretting that she freed him. This is the sixth ending and the last of the “untie the hitchhiker” endings (44).

Sloan’s instincts stop her from untying Jasper. He pleads desperately that the creature will return and kill them both, insisting that she needs his help to escape. She has a final opportunity to reconsider (Chapter 19) or leave him tied up (Chapter 21).

Sloan refuses and replaces the gag after the hitchhiker calls her a derogatory name. She notices a breeze from the right tunnel that likely signals an exit. Before she can investigate, roaring and heavy footsteps announce the creature’s return. She grabs a large rock and considers her options: attack the creature (Chapter 22) or attempt communication (Chapter 23).

Sloan charges the creature with the rock, leaving Jasper bound. The creature enters: It is eight feet tall and has white fur, purple fingers, dark and hollow eyes, and yellow teeth. She recognizes it as an abominable snowman and hurls the rock at its leg with full force. It bounces off harmlessly. The creature emits a series of roars, which Sloan realizes is laughter.

Sloan decides that communication offers better survival odds than fighting. She plans to argue that she’s too lean to be appetizing while suggesting that the hitchhiker is a superior meal. When the abominable snowman enters, she falls to her knees and begs for mercy, offering services including cave organization and constructing a female companion. His shoulders shake, and she realizes that he’s laughing.

The snowman speaks in rumbling but perfect English, mocking humans for assuming that they’re desirable food. He clarifies that he didn’t kidnap Sloan but rescued her after she fainted near her car. He brought her inside to prevent her from freezing. As for the hitchhiker, he explains that he found the man preparing to kill Sloan with a rock and restrained him for her protection. Sloan recalls her own suspicions about the hitchhiker and realizes that her instinct to leave him bound was correct. The abominable snowman may have saved her life.