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I’m not sure about you either. Thanks for the food, anyway.” She leaned her head against the counter, and closed her eyes. “I’m so tired. I think I could sleep for a year.”
    I was pretty tired as well, but there was no way I was going to go to sleep first. I had to keep an eye on my new friend.

Chapter 6
That Night in the Jewelry Store
    By the time we finished eating and getting to know each other, the sun had started to go down. It was too late to get back on the road. We would have to spend the night in the store. Things get much worse at night. That’s when the dogs come out to rule the roads.
    Claire insisted on leaving. “Really, I feel fine. Let’s go,” she said in a perky voice.
    “No. We are going to have to stay the night here.”
    “Why? I’m okay. You saved me. Shouldn’t we move on?” she said lightly touching my arm.
    We? Are we a “we,” now?
I still didn’t know if I wanted her traveling with me. She might slow me down or get me killed or turned.
    “No, things get really bad at night. We’ll have to stay here.” I tried to sound like I knew what I was doing.
    Claire seemed to accept this. “How are we going to do this? Someone has to keep a lookout.”
    “You are going to sleep. I’ll keep a lookout.”
    Claire fiddled with the half-empty bottle of water on the counter. “How are you going to sleep? It’s going to be a long night.”
    “It’ll be okay. I’ll catch a catnap or two while I watch.”
    She seemed convinced. “Okay, sounds good.” Truth is, I needed some sleep as well. However, I knew Claire was in no shape to keep a lookout. She still looked pretty scared and woozy. If I handed her my rifle, she was liable to shoot herself or me in the butt. During the outbreak, I had trained myself to sleep lightly and keep myself alert in case something nasty walked up and said, “ hello.” You learned a lot of new tricks when your undead neighbors were chasing you. The only downside was a gnawing exhaustion that seemed to follow you like a bad smell. Couple that with near starvation, loneliness, and constantly being scared, and it’s a wonder more people didn’t take the easy way out like the poor devil in the jewelry store bathroom. I didn’t bother to tell Claire about our guest who committed suicide by gun. I didn’t know how she was going to react. We could both smell it, but between how she smells and the general environment of the strip mall, the smells all blend together. I probably didn’t smell like a bed of roses either. Keeping yourself clean is pretty difficult when you’re running from hoards of people trying to eat you.
    We cleared a spot on the floor away from the window so Claire could sleep. I found a pillow. It was a silky little thing that the jeweler used to show rings to prospective customers. I also found a case cover that served as a blanket. Just like home.
    I handed her the pillow. “Thanks.” She put it to her face. “Wow, a real pillow. I haven’t had a pillow for a while.” All at once she seemed so small. She must have had it rough.
    “Can I ask you something?” she said, pensively.
    “Sure.”
    “I know you have to keep a lookout, but can you sit near me for a while?”
    “Will it make you feel safe?”
    “Yeah, I guess.”
    “Okay, but when you go to sleep, I’ll have to move over by the window.”
    “Cool.” She looked relieved. She lay down and I covered her up. I sat down next to her on the ground with my rifle across my lap.
    All of a sudden, she bolted upright. “You not going to try and rape me or anything are you? The last guy who tried that got his nuts knocked into his throat.”
    I laughed a little bit. She was a real firecracker. “No. I am not going to try and rape you. I already raped today before I met you. I’m a little tired,” I said, attempting a joke.
    “Very funny,” she snorted, as she lay back down.
    She lay quiet for a moment. I thought she was finally going to sleep.
    “John?”
    “Yes