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mongrel watched him with interest and he thought it wouldn't hurt to give the pack a bath every now and then either. Maybe he would do that on his day off.
    Sam carefully put his belt on with all his Batman-like accessories and weapons and also refilled his pockets. He next grabbed a small overnight bag off a nearby shelf and went to look around. They didn't need anything except maybe some more dog food, still it never hurt to check.
    He found a pharmacy in the back and was angry at himself. Every single time he was near a pharmacy he thought to stock up in case he got sick but realized he didn't know anything about drugs or medicines and could poison himself if not careful. It would be so easy to pick up a pill or drug guide from a bookstore and know what he was getting. He had probably been in this exact same situation a dozen times and just kept forgetting to get the book. Maybe it hadn't actually happened, he thought. Surely he wasn't that forgetful, maybe he was just imagining it or going a little nuts. "Oh great!" he said out loud with a laugh, "like that's better somehow."
    Sam grabbed some aspirin, lip balm, vitamins, and energy drinks regardless. He next went to the sporting goods section not giving the toy or electronic sections a second look. Sam had all the ammo and guns he needed but liked to look and see if there was anything of interest in the outdoor section. He had berated Rachel for years about "shopping" without a clear idea of what you were looking for and realized he was doing the exact same thing now.
    On a whim he picked up a compound bow and tested the draw. Too strong. He picked up another that looked his size and found the draw manageable. He picked up an arrow, notched it to the string and pulling it to his ear letting it fly at a mattress display across the store. Sam decided shooting the bow was great fun and loaded box after box of arrows into a shopping cart along with the bow. He also grabbed a few bottles of propane for those nights he didn't feel like building a fire and then went towards the front of the store again.
    He whistled for The Pack and they came out of various corners of the store, Molly barking to the others to re-emphasize the master's wants. They loaded up their booty in the SUV and got back on the road heading northeast to the sea.
    Sam saw a firework stand and thought how much fun it would be to set off fireworks for the 4th of July. He then decided that old, wet, mice-eaten fireworks were exactly the sort of end that would befall the world's last man in a Greek tragedy. Sam laughed at the absurdity of it all and then slammed on the brakes in sudden panic.
    He realized he had no idea when the 4th of July was. Hell he had no idea what today was. Sam had been keeping track of the days in an old notebook, but couldn't remember the last time he had actually done this or where the notebook even was. He could guess what year it was from counting the seasons, but he wasn't even totally sure of the month. Sam started shaking and moaning and rocking back and forth. The dogs whined and licked at him, but he didn't notice them.
    How could he not even know the date! The rational detached part of his brain tried to calm the rest of him down, telling him it was no big deal, but the short-circuiting part of Sam's brain mounted a full head-on offensive. Fear shrank his vision into a dark tunnel with menacing bird wings on the periphery. With relief, Sam had an alluring idea. He pulled out his pistol, flicked the safety off and stuck the muzzle to his head. Sam's finger was tightening on the trigger as tears rolled down his cheeks when he felt a touch on his shoulder. The dogs were bumping into him in the tight quarters, but he knew this was different. He looked over and saw Barbara his daughter in the passenger seat.
    " It's okay daddy," she said with a smile and pushed the pistol away from his head. "You were never good with dates anyway; it's just the stress of everything that's getting to