18.- Fighting against death
"Welcome to West Virginia. The state in the mountains" Lincoln read, on the rusty and fallen sign beside the road.
"All right. We reach the state limit" Lori said. "It will take us about three hundred miles to reach the Spruce Knob. But everything will be harder from now on, Linky.
The kid nodded. There was no need for Lori to say so.
The situation was critical. Indeed, the loss of the cart allowed them to move faster and travel greater distances, but they already had two weeks severely rationing their food. That region between Ohio and West Virginia had been systematically looted, and they no longer found houses that had groceries or useful supplies for their trip.
Within a radius of dozens of miles, all was razed by fires and destruction of the apocalypse. The forests were calcined by firestorms, and entire cities and towns disappeared. The remains of houses and trees weren't useful even to make a temporary shelter.
At first, they were eating again about a thousand calories per day. Then, eight hundred, and now they estimated that barely consumed about six hundred. They were very thin, and felt hungry and cold all the time. Moreover, winter seemed to begin before than another years, and the days were getting shorter and colder. The rains were over, but they feared that the snowfall would begin very soon.
At least, they had no problems with water. There were many small currents on their way, and tried to drink as much as possible to fool their empty stomachs. Unfortunately, chocolate and food replacements were scarce, and they wondered if that was a good or bad thing. They were weaker each day, and it was harder to carry their weapons and supplies.
However, their desperate situation brought them closer every day. Now, they slept together and hugging each other for warmth and comfort. They were very tender between them, began to use pet names to speak. Sometimes, it was very difficult to be patient, because Lori began to suffer headaches from poor eating. Lincoln, because of his life and the hard times he had been through, could resist more easily. However, he wasn't safe from the consequences of malnutrition. His eyes began to sink, and felt that couldn't see as clearly as before.
"That's all, Linky. It was our last meal. As from now... We have nothing.
It was very sad. Now, they were less than 150 miles far from Spruce Knob. Unfortunately, the road was uphill: they were crossing the mountains, and were very weak. Even worse: the day before had a little snowfall. They were just a few flakes, but they were certainly going to get worse. If they were caught in a true windy storm, surely won't survive.
"I know, Lori. We have to go ahead. It seems that we overcome the most devastated region. It´s possible that we find something, in the remaining villages...
The girl gave him a very forced smile. She didn't tell to Lincoln, but she felt tired and desperate. As she had always had enough food, was just beginning to experience real hunger. That hunger that hurts inside and makes wanting to eat fists of earth, to prevent the stomach from consuming itself.
"Okay, sweety. Let's go. We need to find water, and try to fool our guts by throwing them as much as we can.
Another six days passed, and they both realized that slept much more. They barely wanted to move, and had a hard time doing it. Their backpacks, now much lighter, weighed too much for them. Lori was so weak, felt that bad, that began to think that she would be much better if died. After all, she had the means to end with her life and suffering.
If she didn't, it was for Lincoln. For his support and optimism. The girl admired his resistance. How could he not complain? How could he resist more than her, and help her to get up and move? Where did this strength and will of live come from?
She didn't know, but things were like that. Lincoln was now the strongest of them. It was he who kept the mood; who kept in his being the spark of life that refuses to die.
By the tenth day, even Lincoln didn't want to get up. They only did it because the snow began to cover them, and penetrate their worn clothes.
They walked for a few minutes, until Lori's legs refused to hold her. The girl fell on her knees. They were almost at the top of a climb, and only Lincoln's timely intervention prevented her from rolling down.
He helped her walk towards a small clearing between trees. He didn't know what to do: Lori couldn't stand anymore. He had to let her rest, but; what if the snow got worse?
Lincoln tried to convince her with sweet, brave words. The girl wanted to do it, but she couldn't.
"Linky, please... Let me sleep. I can't get up. I really can't.
"Lori... But what about the snow?" said the boy, fighting against tears. He had never seen her so weak and tired.
"I promise you: if snow gets worse, I´ll get up. You will help me. Yes, sweety?
Lincoln wanted to insist, but Lori was already closing her eyes. He gave up, and took the raincoats out of his backpack. He made a scroll with one, so that Lori will rest her head; and then covered her with the other.
"Thank you, Linky. Please come on. Sleep with me, sweety.
Lincoln obeyed, and lay down hugging the girl. She smiled weakly, and pulled him to give a soft kiss on his lips.
"I'm going to sleep, Linky. I promise you that we will continue walking, okay?
Lincoln nodded. The girl closed her eyes, and began to snore.
He stayed with her, hoping the snow wouldn't get worse. Fortunately, it stopped very soon. The boy gently removed Lori's arm and sat up. He wanted to go out on the road and search: it was urgent that they eat something. Lori was already at the limit of her strength. And to be honest, he too.
He explored very carefully, and managed to spot a house. It was small, hidden behind the trees, and seemed to have another stance, such as a stable or something similar.
His heart skipped a beat. The site was less than a half mile from there. It was almost impossible to see it from the road, and his survival instinct told him there had to be something there.
He wanted to awake Lori, but the girl was totally asleep. It was sure that she going to stay that way for hours. There was no danger that she would wake up soon.
There was no time to lose: it was urgent to explore that house. He made sure that Lori wasn't visible from the road took his two guns and walked slowly over there.