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strength- but she’d be moving on before the flames were lit. She didn’t want to be downwind of this hellhole when the bodies burned.

ELEVEN
    Nadine crouched behind the bushes, tired and out of breath. She’d made it out of that hellhole, but it hadn’t been easy. It had, however, been necessary. Taking in her surroundings, she spotted a two-story farmhouse less than a mile from her current location. A set of doors off to the side of the wrap-around porch let her know there was a basement down below. She wanted to run, screaming, in that direction but forced herself to remain calm. She’d made it thus far- she would proceed with caution, and maybe, just maybe, she could survive this.
    She’d planned on staying a few weeks, but those plans had been blown sky-high in just three short days. She’d made friends there, of a sort, and leaving them behind, these other women, had been the hardest thing she’d had to do since killing Graham. Killing what used to be Graham, she corrected herself. He wasn’t there anymore- it was just a shell she destroyed. She repeated it like a sort of mantra as she wiped the traitorous tears that had started rolling down her cheeks. She didn’t have time for this bullshit.
    She made it to the basement without difficulty, but found the doors chained shut with a heavy padlock. Frowning at the length of chain, she pondered her next move. Perhaps it was a good thing, she told herself. If anyone was still following her, they would see the padlock and move on, assuming she wouldn’t have gotten inside. It was unlikely- she hadn’t heard the sound of pursuit in a couple days, but she’d learned the importance of caution early on. She crept around until she found a window that was open enough for her to get her fingers under it. Steeling herself for the inevitable noise, she pushed with all her might- and nearly fell face-first into the farmhouse. The window slid up so quickly and smoothly that she tottered on her feet for several seconds until she found her balance again. Nadine was nervous now, convinced the house was already inhabited. But darkness was rapidly approaching, and she wanted somewhere safe to hole up before she was unable to see her surroundings. Moving in the dark was too dangerous. Taking a deep breath, she hoisted herself up and through the window.
    As soon as she was inside, she grabbed her weapon and pr epared to defend herself. She’d tucked a chef’s knife into her belt where she could reach it easily if needed, carefully positioned so as not to stab herself while she maneuvered through the area. Not realizing she was holding her breath, she released it and tucked a loose lock of hair behind her ear, deciding to investigate the rest of the house before settling down for the night. Her eyes were accustomed to the dark, and she’d become adept at creeping silently through the world, even with the rapidly growing baby belly. There was a kitchen, dining room, two bathrooms and four bedrooms, yet all of them stood empty. That left only the basement to check, although it took some time for her to find the door, as it was cunningly hidden inside the pantry.
    Descending in the darkness, she stopped every few steps and held her breath, ears tuned to pick up the slightest noise. She found herself curiously disappointed to find the place empty. She’d only had three days with other people, but now she was lonely. She missed the sound of people laughing, the sounds of human feet moving instead of the stumbling shuffle of the undead. It made her feel, once again, like she was the only living person left on the planet. The depth of her loneliness nearly dropped her to her knees. She had never known it was possible to be this empty inside, and she wondered why she was even bothering to move forward from here.
    There were things that needed to be done now, and she forced herself to go through the motions as she pulled out a small penlight she’d snatched on her way out of that