Broken Orbit | ONC

Blocked Doors

   It was the sound of Chance growling that woke me up. My sleep-riddled brain momentarily forgot that I had taken in a dog before I snapped awake, hand grabbing the nearest weapon. Chance yelped with surprise and scrambled backwards. I froze my arm and exhaled, shaking my head. Chance's ears swiveled back to the front door. I got to my feet, my cold bones creaking, and moved to the boarded window. My shoes carefully avoided the pieces of glass. There was nothing in sight but Chance wouldn't let it go.

   I bundled up and grabbed my gun. I had very limited ammo, but it acted as a decent deterrent. I went out the back door and was met with a blast of ice. Blinking it out of my eyes, I peeked around the edge of the house and saw a limp form at the front door. Cautious, I moved forward only to see the person's skin was blue. Their face was bare and let me see their dead eyes. They had died. Chance had likely heard them walk up and had been growling for a while. I'd woken up on the tail end of his warnings. (AN: 2000 word mark.)

   Back inside, I saw the first light switch. It was the dead of night. Flipping it did nothing. There was no power. It was simply too cold for any power lines to have survived. Besides, there was no one to work electrical plants. Oil fields were frozen solid. There hadn't been power for three months. Though turning on the lights was the last thing I needed. It would be a beacon to everyone in eyeshot that I was here. I'd merely been curious enough to try the light.

   I returned to the main room. Chance barked and danced around my feet, catching my laces in his teeth and tugging. Smiling faintly, I sat down to stoke the dying fire. Chance bounced until I finally grabbed a nearby blanket and threw it over him. He laid down to figure out how to free himself while I fixed the fire. Then I tore off the blanket and he jumped on his back legs in pursuit.

   I'd forgotten that puppies required play. I'd been thinking more along the lines of a warmth supply and companionship. I hardly minded playing with him, though. I rifled through my bag for a possible toy. Everything inside was either food or supplies. I looked back down at Chance and snagged the blanket. He bit into the side with small teeth and I dragged him back and forth.

   There was a sudden bang from outside. Chance sat up. I froze and looked upright, alarmed, as voices spoke from outside. "Chump's not movin'. I'd say he's unconscious."

   "You mean we chased him all the way here for nothing?"

   I grabbed the blanket from Chance and threw it over the fire, smothering it instantly. After patting it out quietly, I gathered my things and quickly moved to the wall with the door. Chance sat and watched. I dropped everything into the corner and rushed back, dodging the glass and picking him up against my chest. I'd just gotten back to the corner before a light shone through the boarded window where I had been. My heart thundered. That had been close.

   I hadn't been around people in two months. The last time, it had been a woman that tried to kill me. I had no doubt these people would do the same to steal my supplies. I prayed they hadn't seen the smoke from the fire.

   "Looks empty."

   "Think he was holed up here and fainted when he was about to leave?"

   There was a pause. "He's not fainted, he's dead."

   "What?!"

   "Look at him. He's blue."

   "Shit. Guess that makes our job easier."

   "Grab his one leg. I'll get us inside and we can have it while it's fresh."

    I felt bile in my throat. Cannibals. That was somehow worse than if they were common criminals. Most likely because if they were the ones to kill me, I knew what my fate would be. I had to keep them from knowing I was here. Running wasn't an option. They'd find my footprints. I had to keep them out of the house. I often used the method of pretending there was a wild animal, but that wouldn't work against cannibals. They'd jump at the chance to kill an animal and eat it.

   The only way inside was the door they were currently at. Blowing out a white breath, I moved to the door. I made sure the deadbolt was secure and snagged a nearby chair. I'd been using it for extra kindling. I propped it against the door and leaned my back against it for good measure. The handle jiggled. Chance inhaled to bark but I quickly closed his jaws. He wriggled against my hand as the handle moved again. "Locked. Help me bust it down."

   The door rattled. I pushed my feet against the ground, straining to keep the door from breaking off its hinges. With two men pushing against the other side I heard it creak to break free, but I turned around and pressed my side against the wood and locked my knees. There was a curse from the other side. "It's frozen shut."

   "Let's try the other doors. There's got to be one working or this guy wouldn't have been able to leave the house."

   I'd already tested those doors. They were firmly blocked because of the ice and snow. I allowed myself to exhale and relax a bit. Chance wriggled from my grip on his muzzle and gnawed on my fingers as retaliation.

   A few minutes later and they returned to the front door. It rattled and groaned as I pushed against it with all my might. There was another curse. "It's not budging. Come on, another one of these houses has got to be open. Just forget about this one."

   "Fine."

   Their footsteps crunched away until the wind snatched the sound. I waited a few minutes and finally confirmed they were gone. Anyone with a right mind would have kept fighting to get inside. A locked house meant a house that hadn't been looted. These two were not high up on the intelligence scale. I thanked my luck for that. Tonight had been lucky shots in a row. On the other hand, I knew luck could turn around very quickly. I had been hoping to stick around one more night to search some houses, but I knew I needed to leave and quickly.

2,899 total words. (2,000 word limit marked above.)