Fight, Flight, or Freeze: The Healer's Story
Chapter 74: Finding A Safe Space

Chapter 74: Finding A Safe Space

The light from the burning cars was starting to die back, and I could no longer see my hand in front of my face.

I needed to find a safe place for the night, but where?

To leave the highway meant that I might lose my way in the darkness, but I was too visible here on the road. Anyone coming by would be able to see me, and putting a bullet to my head might be the nicest thing they could do.

I had to stay on the road and be invisible at the same time.

No big deal.

I looked around at all the abandoned vehicles. I could sleep in one of them. The creatures wouldn’t be able to get the drop on me, and neither could any humans.

I used the dying light to find a SUV out on the shoulder of the road, hidden deep in the shadows. Most would overlook it. It was perfect.

Making my way to the driver’s side door, I was surprised to see that it was unlocked.

Duh, I don’t think that they would have taken the time to lock the door of a car that they left behind.

Sliding into the driver’s seat, I gently closed the door, making sure not to make a sound. You could never be too careful.

Digging into my bag of goodies, I took out a few bungee cords and hooked them together. Placing one hook through the handle of the passenger’s door, I held on to it as I did the same to the driver’s seat.

Once I pulled the two ends together as much as I could, I hooked them together.

There was no slack.

It would be impossible for anyone to be able to open either door wide enough to be able to slip into the SUV. Of course, it would have been a lot easier if the lock on the doors would work, but since that was not the case...

Just call me Kevin McCallister.

I did the same thing to the back seat doors before taking out my sleeping bag from the go bag.

I was getting hungry, but I was still able to ignore it for right now. I was going to stretch my supplies for as long as I could.

I had no idea how long it would take for the government to come in and sort everything out, and until that happened, I would pretend that this was the end of the world.

I placed my bag on the floor of the back seat and slid my way down until I was stretched out. It wasn’t the most comfortable bed that I had ever been in, but it would be able to keep me safe.

I pulled up my black sleeping bag and used it as a blanket.

Hidden in the shadows, I closed my eyes to get a few hours of sleep.

----

"This isn’t going to work," grumbled Bai Long Qiang as he paced back and forth in the entrance of the cave that his team had found.

He looked around at the men huddled around the fire. Twelve men. That was it out of the sixteen that had come on this ’training exercise’ with him.

Twelve fucking men.

"It’s November. The snow is going to start soon, and the temperature is going to drop even more," interjected Cheng Bo Jing as if he were the one in charge of the team. "We are also going to need food. Our supplies will be completely gone in three days, four if we really stretch them."

"Not to mention the creatures that are out hunting in the woods, too," pointed out Si Dong from where he lay on his back. He had one arm under his head, acting as a pillow, and the other one was resting casually on his stomach.

If you didn’t know better, you would think that he was relaxing at the beach or something, not being hunted.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious. Does anyone else have something that they want to add?" hissed Bai Long Qiang. He knew he needed to get a grip on things. He was chosen to lead this team for a reason.

"I have to get back to City D fast," he sighed, walking over to the entrance of the cave and sliding down the rocky wall until he was sitting.

"You and the rest of us, too," reminded Ye Yao Zu. As the second in command of the team, it was up to him to step in when Bai Long Qiang couldn’t handle it.

This was one of those times.

"What do we do first?" asked one of the men sitting around the fire. He didn’t bother looking at anyone, just stared into the fire.

"First?" sighed Bai Long Qiang.

"Food, shelter, security," said Cheng Bo Jing as he looked around. "We are in the middle of the woods; there should be something to hunt around here."

"Yi Chen and I can go out and try to find some game," said another man, coming to his feet. A second one, Yi Chen, also stood up and grabbed his gun.

Ye Yao Zu nodded his head. "If you run into any of the creatures, five shots in the air will get us there to support you."

Yi Chen nodded his head, and the two disappeared into the forest. The rising sun made it easier for everyone to see, and hopefully, it would be the normal time for deer or even rabbits to wake up and search for food.

"Yang Mo and I will go out and get more firewood," said a third man as he came to his feet. If they were going to be staying here for a while, they needed a good supply of dried firewood. Especially when the snow started falling.

"Same for you. Five shots," said Cheng Bo Jing, clasping Yang Mo on the shoulder. The two men nodded their heads as they left.

"What can we do?" asked yet another member of the team.

"ATM, do you still have that map of the area? The topographical one with satellite images?" asked Si Dong, quickly sitting up. "I thought I saw a hunting cabin on one of the maps before we left base."

ATM reached into his bag and pulled out all of the maps that they had been given before they had left City D.

He laid them all out on the ground, and the other five members left in the cave crowded around them.

"There!" exclaimed Bai Long Qiang, pointing to the image of a building.

"It looks to be a few clicks away from here... maybe half a day? We’ll wait until the others come back, and then we will leave. It is easier to defend a cabin than a hole in a cliff. At least the cabin will have a door to keep out the wind and snow."

This chapter is updated by freew(e)bnovel.(c)om