The Wastelands

Chapter 18

Sunlight bathed the floor in the den to a golden brown. It added a warmth to the room, aiding the fire still glowing strong. Frank squinted until his eyes adjusted to a light he hadn't seen for a few days. He glanced around the room, noticing a new stack of logs added to the pile in the corner. There was enough to get through another day or two. He didn't remember Blue coming home or even hear her moving around, but assumed she had brought in the firewood.

He shoved the blanket aside and got to his feet. He stretched his arms over his head and listened to his spine cracking. Through the window, the sun glistened off the blinding snow. Not a cloud to be seen in the sky. The panels on the roof finally had the chance to recharge and he hoped to have the house running by late afternoon. The furnace in the basement would be greatly welcomed and the pipes would hopefully thaw within a day or so.

Slowly, he moved through the den and stepped into the living room. The sound of breathing caught his ear before he walked into the hallway. His eyes drifted to a spot on the floor where two strangers slept under a pile of blankets. A man and a woman were covered in dirt and filth with scraggly hair flowing from their heads. What little he saw of their clothing was tattered and soiled. He gritted his teeth and clenched his hands to fists.

"Blue!" he shouted as he ran up the stairs, turning toward her bedroom at the top. "Dammit, Blue, what the hell did you do last night?"

He burst inside her bedroom and expected to find her staring out the window like normal. Her non-sleeping patterns had become part of her daily routine. When he pushed inside, he found the balcony doors closed and the curtains drawn. Sunlight had been blocked from entering the bedroom for the first time since she barged into his life.

She lay on the bare mattress with her head buried in a pillow, still wearing her clothes from the day before. Her eyes were closed and she breathed easily in a calm slumber. Of the few nights he caught her sleeping, she had never once looked as peaceful as she did then. Five times he woke up to her screaming during a nightmare or begging to be set free from a dream that seemed more real than being awake. Rarely did she sleep for more than two hours at a time or look as comfortable as she did without having some sort of false reality ripping apart her rest.

Frank smiled as confusion rushed through his mind. As much as he wanted to rip her a new one for bringing home a couple of strangers, he opted to let her sleep a while longer. He quietly tiptoed out of the room and walked back to the stairs. At the bottom, he noticed his yelling had woken one of the strangers. A skinny figure wrapped in a wool blanket stood in the living room doorway, ashamed of his appearance. His scraggly beard and unwashed hair had dirt and bits of hay tangled in the strands. He lowered his head, avoiding eye contact as Frank moved closer.

"Come with me." Frank insisted, keeping his voice quiet to not wake the other one.

"Yes sir." The man replied.

They went into the kitchen and Frank walked to the refrigerator. He took two bottles of water from his stash and poured them each into a pot already sitting on the gas stove. A pack of matches rested on the counter next to the stove. He took out a match, turned on the gas for the front burner, and lit a small flame under the pot. Warm tea sounded like a good idea for his guest.

"Have a seat." Frank motioned to a chair at the table.

The man obeyed, carefully sitting in one of the oak chairs. After a few moments of complete silence, the kettle whistled and Frank poured them each a glass of honey tea. He placed the cups on the table, then sat across from the stranger.

"Mind telling me who you are?" Frank questioned.

"My name is Parker Bates. That's my sister, Penny, still asleep in there."