Silo

Chapter 25

"She was right," I said, handing my pack to Keith as I knelt down and grasped the handle of the shaft door. It was ajar, a ragged piece of scrap metal wedged into the crack, keeping it open. Made sense, I guess. With the falling temperatures and the slushy ice raining down, they were probably afraid it'd freeze shut, leaving them outside to fend for themselves.

Keith groaned as he tried to pry the metal out from the opening. "I could use a hand here."

I dug the palms of my hands into the gnarled metal and gripped it as tightly as I could, wincing as a dull pain crept into my skin. My hands were freezing and every pull hurt more than the last. With one final yank from both of us it jarred free.

"Come on, let's go," he whispered, lobbing it a few feet away. "In and out, remember?"

I nodded, giving one final look back towards the woods. We had to be quick. Meredith was sitting out there in the woods, freezing, with no one but Evan to watch her back. "I'll head down and make sure it's clear. Just be ready."

Tucking my knife between my teeth I descended into the darkness, my feet slipping more than once on the cold icy ladder. That same caustic smell hit me, but this time there was something new...earthy and synthetic at the same time.

Flicking on my lantern, I quickly glanced around the room, past the stairwell, and into their main living quarters. It was empty, not a single living soul down here. A short whistle brought Keith sliding down the ladder, his hand covering his nose as he trudged through the two inches of slushy disease on the floor. "What the hell is that smell? Fire?"

I shrugged, wondering that exact same thing. It didn't smell like any fire I'd ever lit. There wasn't the crisp, sweet smell of paper or wood. Plus, given how much water was on the floor, I doubted they could even start a decent fire unless it was elevated somehow.

"I say we grab something they'll miss, something important...enough to let them know we've been here and then get the hell out," I said. Something about this place felt different than the first time we were here. Darker. More suffocating.

"Like Meredith?" Keith joked. "I bet they're already missing her."

I ignored his bad attempt at humor and made my way over to the far wall and stack of papers I saw sitting there. There was nothing of interest, just some textbooks and old magazines. I pulled out a two-year-old issue of playboy and tossed it at Keith. He glanced at it quickly, turning the pages to get a better view before rolling it up and shoving it in his back pocket. I couldn't help but laugh. We'd taken their girl, and their porn; god knows what they were going to do for amusement now.

"I'm taking their ammo," Keith said. "Whatever new stuff they got is all mine now," He made his way over to the stash of supplies they kept against the far wall. He dug through it, emerging with what was left of his crossbow. Carbon frame shattered, big hunks missing - it was totaled. "Bastards!"

"Jesus, Keith, keep it down!" I said. Everything down here echoed, our own breath bouncing back at us off the concrete walls. It freaked me out, and Keith's sudden burst of temper wasn't helping.

The corner I'd found Meredith in was empty, her mattress, her clothes, even the bucket they'd placed beside her bed was gone. It was like they had erased any evidence of her from their mind, as if she'd never mattered to them to begin with.

I cursed under my breath and turned to help Keith. "Found the smell," he said, pointing to a charred frame in the corner of the room.

"Bed?" I asked

"Looks like it," Keith replied.

I walked over and kicked the hunk of metal, sending a spray of sparks into the air. It was nothing more than a blackened pile of springs and fabric propped up against the wall. Beside it, a pile of what appeared to be clothing remnants laid smoking, still releasing the bitter odor we'd been trying to identify.