“Yeah, let’s do it. But don’t get your hopes up. Hospitals are usually the first things looted in a town.”
We turn left and continue for a few blocks but soon realize this hospital will be useless to us. TheEllensburg Regional Hospitalsign still stands, but behind it are the charred remains of several buildings. The fire even spread to the surrounding neighborhood.
Zach laughs. “So I’m guessing that’s a no.”
I laugh back. “Yeah, that’s a no.” I’m glad he still has a sense of humor, despite obviously being in pain.
We continue down a main arterial. I haven’t seen a single drugstore yet, nothing either way as we pass each cross street. Finally, on our right, several blocks down, a sign with a big redSdominates the view.
“Perfect,” I say, pointing toward it.
“Safeway?”
“Yep. People forget about the drugstores inside supermarkets. And they’re secured from the rest of the store, so there’s a chance of it being untouched.”
The Safeway is in terrible shape. All the windows are smashed, and a car has crashed into it, collapsing the front facade. We carefully step over broken glass and loose bricks and head into the store.
Almost all the shelves are bare, picked over by looters long ago. We go up and down each aisle, grabbing anything we think will be valuable. A few cans of dog food. Some baby formula. Not great, but they have calories. That’s about all that’s left.
When we get to the pharmacy, I’m happy to see the metal security door rolled down. A small keyhole sticks out of the bottom right side. Zach shines his flashlight on it, scrutinizing it.
“Well, looks like somebody already tried to force the lock. But let me give it a go, anyway.”
“Of course you pick locks. Why didn’t I guess that?” I laugh.
“I’ve been known to dabble.”
“You just keep the surprises coming, don’t you?”
Zach shoots a mischievous smile back at me and removes the small set of tools from the pack. “Life on Vashon Island was boring. I had lots of free time.”
“So you became a thief?”
“Hey, picking locks comes in handy. Once people on the island knew about it, they’d call me before they called a locksmith. My currency was chocolate bars.”
I laugh. “Well, I’m fresh out.”
“I’ll take other forms of payment,” Zach says, dripping with innuendo, and I shoot him back a sultry look.
He turns his attention to the lock, inserting two delicate-looking tools into the keyhole. For a moment, I watch him work. I love that look of concentration he gets when he’s got a problem to solve. His face scrunches up, and his lips purse. It’s so adorable. I still have so much to learn about this guy. I keep finding out new things about him all the time.
Giving Zach some space to work undistracted, I search more of the aisles. Around the pharmacy area, some shelves even have a few items left. I find a couple of bottles of children’s ibuprofen and stash them in the bag.
Then I come up to a section I hoped would still be stocked. Family planning. A couple of boxes of condoms and three bottles of lube have yet to be looted. I smile, and my cheeks get a little warm. This is precisely what I was looking for. If Zach and I decide to take things to the next level, I want to be ready.
Some might think during the apocalypse, it’s easy to sayscrew itand not care about safe sex anymore. But they’d be wrong. Without health care, you have to bemoreworried about that kind of shit. Not less.
As I reach for my backpack, a strange sensation comes over me. That charged energy when somebody enters a room. I turn to see a small girl down the aisle, staring at me. She can’t be any older than five or six. Honestly, she gives me the creeps as goosebumps cover my arms. It’s like I’m watchingThe Shining.
She stares at me, unblinking, with a blank expression on her face.
“Hey, little girl.” I speak in soft tones to not startle her. “Are your parents around?”
She turns around and runs.
Shit.
I grab my rifle off my pack and run after her. I don’t know what to do when I catch her, but she can’t be allowed to tell anyone we’re here.
