The Darkest Days

CHAPTER TWO: Goodnight Candles

It was nearly sundown and yet we found no where safe to sleep for the night. Gabe was dead on his feet and I had to carry his pack and was beginning to feel its weight. All around us in the gray twilight there were the remains of human society, a rusted out shell of a car, a broken beer bottle (which I took to use as a weapon), a sack of garbage thrown to the side of the road (Gabe and I sorted through it and found a tin can to cook our food in and few peices of old greasy newspaper to line our shoes with), it had the power to make you sentimental. Still yet this rural area was prefered to the cities and suburbs were Death and Chaos not only ruled put consumed like some sort of self-righteous fire purging away sins.

I had heard, from a few of the more friendly travelers on the road, that the cities were crawling with the dead things and that the few people that survived were no better than them. I heard that the people hid underground in old sewer pipes clutching to their valuables as the monsters that used to be their loved ones passed over head, and that they would only come out at high noon, their eyes blinking in the light like little rats, and would scavenge. I also heard that a few humans had formed gangs to fight the dead things and that the gangs would kill not only the dead things but living people as well. I heard that if you were sick or old or a child or just weaker than the others,  the gangs would rape you then roast you alive and eat your flesh like the dead things because there was no food in the cities. I also heard that the roads in and out of the cities had been blocked by the army so no one could enter or leave, but I knew as well as any that the army had fallen just like the rest, so I supposed thats why the rumors had spread, people must've gotten out after the blockades failed.

That was why I was glad Gabe and I lived out in the country, though when our parents were bitten we knew we had to leave, at least we knew where we could go. That's why we were traveling, we were going to the Mammoth Cave National Park, it was big and no people lived there. There were lots of deer and turkey to hunt there too, and since my dad and I had went hiking there alot I knew exactly the place to go.

It was huge sinkhole, filled with brush and trees, there was a small stream in one corner and a protected ledge in another. The ledge had only a small path with a sheer rock wall on one side and a long drop on the other, I could easily protect the ledge, which woud itself protect Gabe and I from the winter winds. I also knew there were deer and rabbit nearby along with coyote and frogs, no Gabe and I would be alright there, just so long as we could get there before winter.

Ahead on the old cow path (we could tell it was a cow path because of the way it wound around obstacles instead of through them like a deer path) there looked to be some kind of abandoned house. A wall had fallen down, all the windows were busted out, the tin roof was pulled up in one corner, and the entire structure coated in bright green vines; it had been abandoned before the fall, that was always a good sign.

"Gabe I think we should check out that house." I murmured dropping the packs by him. "Stay here until I give you the signal." I pushed through the underbrush as quietly as I could until I reached the front door, it was locked, oh well, I'd just go through the window.

My shotgun was cocked and ready to be fired if I saw a dead thing, but I soon realized it wasn't nescesary, the downstairs had two rooms a den where the wall fell down and the floor had collapsed in and a kitchen filled with dead leaves and animal scat. Upstairs had two bedrooms with metal beds and an old chest and an early model television. It was empty and safe so I gave a hooting sound to call Gabe in. Whilst I waited I went into the kitchen to see if there was any food, though it was very unlikely.

Dust and dead leaves covered everything and it smelled horrible like a giant kitty litter box, and as I originally suspected upon the the inspection of the cabinets there was no food, just roaches which I was almost tempted to eat. It had been two days since our last meal and I felt weak and dizzy even though I made ssure Gabe and I drank lots of water from the stream we were walking along. Water wasn't cutting it anymore, my stomach wanted food and it wasn't fooled by the water, I hoped maybe Gabe wasn't as hunngry. I made sure he always got bigger portions than me. Maybe I'd try hunting, and there were some dafodils in the feild nearby I thought you could dig those and eat them, I bet they would taste like potatoes. My mouth started watering at the thought of food, I'd heard people could eat clover, maybe I would boil it like collard greens, I hated those, but hey they were food.

"Scar?" Gabe came up behind me and pulled my t-shirt.

"Yeah honey?" I answered sweetly taking the heavy packs from him. I saw his worried look, I'd taught him to always be cautious even if it looked safe, but this place didn't even look all that safe. "It's s'alright, I checked it out. We oughta be fine here." Still he looked apprehensive of the abandoned house. I felt too tired to convince him and the sun was going down. "Go upstairs and set up our stuff then come down here and get a fire cooking. I'm makin supper."

At the word supper he immediately perked up and began taking our things upstairs as I went out to get the daffodil bulbs. Things were starting to look up for Gabe and I, then again that just might be my stomach talking.

It was dark by the time I got back in, a mess of daffodil bulbs in hand along with a very unlucky little squirrel that had came right up to me and gotten its brains blown out. But despite my good luck gathering food, I was in a bad mood. Gabe hadn't lit the fire! What the hell? He knew I was bringing back food and now it would be too dark inside the house to light it we'd have to wait until morning to cook our food and loose traveling time in the process.

I tramped up the stairs ready to set off on a rant at his stupid mistake when suddenly I noticed a candle had been lit in the other bedroom. This was it, he knew we couldn't waste candles! Those things were hard to come by, plus he should've used his time lighting that stupid candle, to light me a stupid fire! I was hungry and he didn't care enough to just light the fire. I was going to let him have it.

I slammed open the door to the bedroom to see Gabe cowering in the corner and a man sitting on the bed holding one of our candles who most definatly wasn't Gabe. From behind me I heard the door slam shut and heard a CRACK as something slammed across the back of my head. And Everything went black, that was weird I thought a candle was lit.