Blackout • NH

Chapter 35

Jodie's POV

I rode for what felt like hours. I was finally in Louisiana and the shoreline became harder to follow with the thick brush and swamps appearing more and more. I needed to take a route around this and make it to the Everglades. But I needed to give this poor horse a break.

I rode a little deeper into the thick brush until I found what looked to be a 200 year old tree. It looked climbable and I'm only a few weeks pregnant, I'm still able to move functionally.

Hopefully I can find a little crevasse I can sleep in. I don't want to sleep on that ground knowing there's probably snakes or poisonous bugs in that marshy bog.

I tie the horse off to a low hanging branch on a tree a couple yards away and make my way to the tree and start climbing. I climb a good 40 feet into the tree when I notice something in my way. An old abandoned tree house. It looks like it's been abandoned way before the blackout.

I maneuver my way around the tree and find a hole to crawl in. I make my way into the tree house and look around.

Windows cover the tree house all the way around. I look out the window and see trees, ocean, swampland and a small city off in the distance. Most likely Baton Rouge.

The tree house is hidden from the ground so nobody knew it was here besides whoever built it or knew it was here.

I continue to look around and see a small couch, a TV stand but no TV, just a bunch of books. I continue to look and see a wooden statue of an eagle, carved into a huge branch that the house was built around. Next to that, I see a door.

I open the door slowly and look to see what's behind it. It leads outside to a metal swinging bridge. It goes all the way above the forest to another tree that's even larger. I can see a bigger treehouse built onto it. It looks like it goes across a river or swamp.

I carefully made my way across the long surprisingly sturdy bridge and headed towards the next house.

I looked down and noticed that this tree grew in the deep water of the swamp below. Very inaccessible to anyone because of alligators or the brush is too thick to get through. I wonder how they were able to build this house up here?

I come to a ladder that was carved into the tree. I begin to climb it until I reach a door with a latch. I pull on the latch and push the door open and climb in. I close the door behind me and lock it shut and look up and I am stunned by what I see.

It's an actual home built into a tree. Hidden from ground view and from anyone and everyone. It looked a bit messy, like whoever was living here was in a rush to leave. There were papers and cans of food laying about.

To my left is a small kitchen in the corner with a small island bar with a few stools separating it from the spiral staircase that wraps around a huge branch next to it.

To my right was what looked to be a family room full of couches, chairs, tables and a bookshelf. What's even more bizarre was the small bathroom to the right of me with an actual toilet, sink and shower. Weird to see in a treehouse.

I walk to the kitchen and look around. I open a few drawers and cabinets and I am stunned by what I see. The cabinets are full. Cans and cans of food that were left here. I close the cabinets back and look around some more until I see the staircase.

I head towards the tall spiral staircase and make my way up it. Little parts of the staircase would be flat and lead to small messy bedrooms. This house was built similar to how ants build their nests. Every few feet would be another room.

I continue to make my way up until I reach the top. Theres a door blocking the way. I try to open it but it won't budge. It's locked.

I dig into my bag and find a dagger. I use it to unscrew the doorknob and the huge lock laying across it. I fumble with it for about 10 minutes until I get both locks undone.

I slowly open the door and peek in. It was a huge room with more lounging sofas and a mini bar. I open the door a bit more so I can see what lies to the left.

All of a sudden, my hand is grabbed. I feel it being sliced open as I'm pulling away to escape. I'm pulled into the room and look to see what's grabbing me. A glazer.

I kick and punch as much as I can to get away and to keep it from cutting my stomach. I am shoved to the floor and held down by the creature. His eyes beaming red, the smell of his rotting flesh filling nose.

I see my dagger on the floor. I must have dropped it when I was grabbed. I continue to fight back as I try to reach my dagger, I'm only a few feet away from it but still can't reach it.

The glazer suddenly grips my neck and I can feel it being sliced open slowly and painfully. I still however fight to grab my dagger.

Suddenly, I see a pair of feet and my dagger is kicked towards me and I grab it. I then lunge my arm forward and stab the glazer right into the face. The dagger going through his eye socket and into is brain. Killing him instantly. I push the dead glazer off of me and sit up to catch my breath.