Chapter 14 "Mark Twain National Forest"
Day 33
The group had spent another day at the barn on the outskirts of Hayti, just to make sure that Beth would be ready and able to go. Of course, with her hand a huge ball of bandages, she wouldn't be much help either way, but there's no good in bringing someone unfit to travel, especially if they're in screaming agony. Thankfully, she was doing very well on this day, and they decided they would leave immediately.
They made it to a perfect area in the park about four hours later, around 1 in the afternoon. It was a house in the middle of the forest, a few meters from a small river, and it was in the middle of a clearing, where the sides of the forest could be seen for about half a mile out all around the house.
Robert, Xavier, Seth, and Sierra went inside to clear out the house, but found nothing. The whole house seemed to be completely intact, no signs of scavengers raiding it or even the people who lived here leaving it. Family photos were still in place above the fireplace and along the hallway. A jewelry box found in the master bedroom seemed to be untouched, stocked full of necklaces, earrings, and bracelets. "The residents must have been out when this all started," Robert said, he and Sierra trying on some of the jewelry. "Maybe they were on vacation." While trying on the jewelry, Robert looked at himself in the mirror. His facial hair was growing in and it was rough. It had been bugging him a lot over the past few days, being unused to the prickly hair. God, I hope this house has razors in it somewhere, he thought. Seth, Xavier, and Shawn look a bit overdue for a shave, as well.
"Or just at the store a few miles back. At work. Maybe picking up their kids from daycare. Who knows," Seth said.
"Or they're still alive," Xavier said forebodingly.
The house was moderately small, but it had two stories and a basement. Thankfully, the living room and the bedrooms were very large, and provided sufficient space for everyone to stay in comfortably.
The yard was odd, though; the fence formed a right triangle around the house, with the side to the east having the farthest point, and three small buildings lining it. One was a tool shed, another was a chicken coop, and the farthest one was a small barn where hay, seeds, and animal food was kept. The fence surround the yard was tin beginning to rust, small streaks of reddish-brown spaced out along it. On the hypotenuse side to the northwest was a pre-plowed garden, with neglected plants growing, moderately drooping. Thankfully, it rained enough around here that watering it wasn't necessary, and when it wasn't raining, there was plentiful sunlight.
Further exploring the less likely nooks and crannies (just in case; after Arnold, being too safe wasn't a thing) Seth opened the fridge to find tons of rotten food, creating a foul, awful odor that made him gag. "Well," he yelled to Xavier, "whoever lived here is definitely gone. Or a fuckin' slob," he finished, gagging once more before slamming the fridge shut. He hesitantly opened the deep freeze, not wanting to be confronted with such an awful stench, but not wanting to leave any stone unturned. There were many things frozen inside, such as bagged chicken, ground beef, harvested vegetables, and some lunch meats. He smiled, checking the expiration dates and determining that most of the food inside was still good thanks to the added lifeline of being frozen.
The four took their findings back to Hershel, who had kept the group outside of the RVs, ready to fight or defend should they be needed, with Patricia, Lyrik, Jessie, Ron, and Beth still inside the vehicles to help anyone who got injured. They said that the place checks out, and that they found many things that the group could use, including fresh changes of clothes and the actually edible meat. Hershel smiled happily and they began to unpack their meager belongings from the RVs to settle into their new home. Hopefully this time they could find peace.