Author's Notes: You know I love you guys! That's why I'm giving you another chapter! No new character yet. I may reveal his name next chapter. Maybe. Heeheehee...

Chapter 7: A Cold Dinner

I fill the pot with water and boil the tools once again before shutting the burner off. My stomach growls and my throat feels dry. "Are you hungry too?" I ask the happy and now painless dog. He looks at me before trying to get up. "No, no, no, no! Stay put. You don't want to tear your stitches. And you need time to heal. I'm sure there's food around here somewhere. I'd like to save these soup cans in case we end up where there's no food available."

I wander around the kitchen, looking through each cupboard for some food. We are in a kitchen after all. I leave the cabinets open that contain food. A lot of it is canned and I found a few bags of beef jerky. There are also some crackers and various cookies and snacks. Unfortunately, they are long past their expiration dates.

I pull out the canned food and beef jerky. It looks like its enough to last a good couple weeks or so. I pull out a plate and can opener that I happened to find in my search of food. I open a can of corned beef and nearly gag as the meat smell hits me. "I no longer wonder why all the cans I found in my car were meatless... Ugh..." I shake out the beef onto the plate. It slides out can-shaped so I mash it with a fork. I then open a can of mixed vegetables and dump them on the plate next to the beef. "Missing something... Something fibrous... Potatoes!" I open a can of mashed potatoes and fill in the last spot on the plate with them.

"Want it warm?" I ask the dog but he just reaches towards the plate. He must be hungry. I set the plate in front of him and he immediately digs in. I smile as I say "I'll put some meat on your bones, don't you worry."

I pull out a plate for myself and pour myself some vegetables, potatoes, and beans. Like the dog, I don't really care if it's warm or not right now. We both noisily eat, grateful for the food we found. "Who am I? I knew exactly what to do and with what... I must have been a surgeon or maybe a veterinarian even."

The dog looks up from his dinner questioningly at me. "I can't remember anything prior to today..." I answer to his unspoken question. "I hope I was a good doctor, whether it be for animals or people." I continue eating for a bit before speaking once again. "I don't know who you are either. The least I can do is give you a name. I'll rattle off some names and see if there's any you like. How's that sound?" He wags his tail in excitement.

I think for a moment before I begin rattling off names. "Keirnan, Buddy, Abe, Ace?" Each one is responded with a displeased growl. So I begin again. "All Mighty Hank the Tank Hankerton?" The growl is low and deep but his tail wags as we both find it amusing. "Haha. No? Okay how about Suede, Shane, Xavier, Rico?" Again all growls. "Kane, Dante, Victor, Xander?" The growls continue to come but I'm out of ideas. Then one name seems to resonate within me. "Salem." It is not a question but a statement and in agreement, his tail wags. "Salem it is." I smile as I reach and gently pet Salem's head. He wags his tail happily at the attention.

I look out the window and see that it is getting darker by the minute. The fog still clings to this forsaken place relentlessly. "Let's stay here for the night. Your in no position to be wandering about with your stitches. Are you in pain? I'll give you some morphine if you are." Salem whines and pour out the now cold water and fish out the syringe. I fill the syringe with a bit of morphine before removing the air bubbles like I did with the nova cane. I inject the morphine into the skin on his back before setting the syringe back into the pot.

Having finished our dinner, I collect the plates and utensils before putting them Ito the sink. I then pull out a bowl and cup before filling both with water. I set the bowl in front of Salem. "I hope your dinner was good. Looks like we may be living off canned food for a while but at least we have a variety to choose from." I say as I watch him lap up the water. I sip from my own cup, surprised at how pure the water tastes. This place may be covered in rust and blood but at least the water supply it's contaminated.

I wander to the single door that is jammed. "Wish we could do better than this. Maybe I can find something." I wander into the cafeteria, having left the door open from my earlier inspection. I spot a few chairs and set one under the cafeteria and kitchen doors that lead to the hallway. I am a little more relieved now that there is a bit more protection in place now.

"That should do for the time being." I say as I take a seat on the counter next to Salem. I run my hand gently over his furless skin, causing his tail to wag. He turns and licks my hand. "Careful of your stitches." He rests his head on his paws and looks up at me. "We should try to get some sleep." I state as I lie down on the counter behind him, the two of us keeping each other warm. Sleep then over takes me.