Read After [A Journey of the Twins Novel] for Free Online

visible ahead except a few trees and open fields, she decided to chance it.
    Tugging on the reins, she turned Jack in that direction with the hopes that an old hunter's shack or an abandoned house would soon appear. If nothing showed, at lease she would have the cover of many trees to hide in.
    Drizzle had disappeared some time ago. Shyanne wasn't worried. She knew he would find her no matter where she went.
    She rode for another half hour and was starting to wonder about her decision when she came upon a clearing with an old building in its center. She was glad to see the shelter.
    From the looks of it, the roof had disappeared a long time ago. Only parts of the rotten rafters remained. It had four stone walls. A good thing since the red hue of the setting sun now blanketed everything. The remnants of a wooden fence marked the outskirts of the property. Tall, ripe wheat covered most of the field. It waved as if inviting her to stay.
    "At least the walls will protest us from the cool night winds. And whatever else,” Shyanne said to her horse. She looked up at the clear sky. “I don't think we'll have to worry about rain tonight.” She dismounted and walked into the building.
    The door, like the roof, was long since gone. She entered what appeared to be the main living area. Another room was located in the back and was probably for sleeping. The floor was made of hard, compacted dirt with patches of tall grass growing in both rooms. There was plenty of space for the three of them.
    Only bare walls and bits of broken wood from the roof were evident. No furniture remained. The wall dividing the two rooms was in bad shape. The doorway was three times what it should have been. She gave it a quick shake. It held up against her rough handling.
    Shyanne went outside and brought Jack into the back room, removing his saddle, bridle, and blanket. She brushed him down as best she could with some dried grass and fed him a handful of grain from the saddlebag. There was no need to hobble him; he never wandered off.
    When she finished with Jack, she piled her things in the front room. Shyanne walked around, both inside and out, and gathered wood before it became too dark. She wanted to make sure there was enough to last the night. Afterwards, she dug a small pit. In no time, a fire was burning, the winding cloud of soot disappearing into the night sky above.
    She moved her bag closer to the fire and took inventory of her foodstuff. She had had no time to replenish her supplies before the two men confronted her, and was thankful for the gift given by the stableman. She opened the white cotton bundle to see trail bread, jerky, a wedge of hard cheese, along with some dried apples inside. She still had plenty of rice, but it was nice to have something else to go with it.
    A small, battered pot emerged from her bag. She placed it on the outer aspect of the fire and poured water in to boil. Some rice followed, along with some of the jerky. The scent of a fine meal soon filled the air.
    The pot was one of the few things she had managed to keep from the pre-virus time. When they were little, her parents had taken the twins to a used army supply store and bought each their own camping gear. The thought of parting with the old pot for a new one was more than she could bear. It had too much sentiment attached to it.
    After finishing her food, she ate a few of the dried apples. These goodies are to be savored, not wolfed down. She tucked the rest back into the cotton bundle.
    Shyanne cleaned up and put everything away before spreading out her blanket. Drizzle had not returned yet, which was nothing out of the ordinary. He sometimes disappeared for days when hunting. She knew he would find her when he was ready.
    She placed her sword on the ground next to her. Her boots followed. Crawling beneath the covers, one of her arms slid under her head like a pillow as she looked up at the night sky, listening to the crickets play their music. She was eyeing