The Varkari

Trap

Just a little, I reasoned. I could let myself go this once and it probably would not be too bad in the morning. We had buckets of melted snow water and could simply hydrate. "We are breaking rule number four, you know."

"Nah, because we aren't foraging. That house right there has a pretty full stash. Then, we come right back," she said, pointing at the edge of the overgrown golf course. Out we went, careful to step in the patchy areas where the snow was melted on the pavement or clumps of dead grass. We would never step directly on mud or dirt as it could leave prints.

"This was the first house I looted," she whispered when we were inside. "They had a minivan and a truck. Loaded them both up and took off with everyone else. The asshat liked to tell my dad he made better steaks than him, but his grill was a dumpy little thing and he could only cook them medium or more. No finesse. I felt bad breaking in here at first, but now I just want to bust it up."

"That'd probably make a lot of noise."

"Yeah, yeah. This way," she grumbled, leading me into the basement that appeared to have flooded not long ago, but had dried to sparse puddles. It would have been a typical man cave with a red shag rug, pool table, and bar, but when those were the only remaining items, it looked like a sad back room.

Shonnie rounded the bar and clicked her flashlight on. "What do you feel like? Kalua? Peppermint schnapps? There is a little bit of Jaeger left and some Sailor Jerry."

"Uhhh." None of it sounded good. "Maybe Kalua?"

She grunted and grabbed two bottles, heading back up and out. I traipsed forlornly after her, my stomach twisting with the pain I was about to bring it.

"Alright girl, we are going to sing Christmas carols and the works," she said, clanking the bottles down on the counter inside, pushing aside a pile of cans. That same stack had dwindled dramatically in the last few weeks, but I was not going to think about that.

"For the ambiance," I agreed, drawing the Kalua towards me and opening the cap. "Here goes nothing." I sipped in the sweet, coffee liquor, cringing a little as it had been a while since I had anything but a beer. The warmth spread over my tongue and made a line down my throat.

Shonnie chugged the remaining Jaeger like a seasoned pro and popped her lips.

I grimaced.

"Don't be a wimp, baby. It's gotta get bad before it gets better. What do you want to sing first? Jingle Bells or Deck the Halls?"

"Jingle Bells?"

By the time night was upon us, the walls were spinning and we were extraordinarily drunk, howling into the empty building with our raunchy covers of whatever holiday song we could muster. With alcohol usually came bad ideas and we decided to bathe, reasoning that we were less likely to feel the cold of the water in such a state.

The buckets crowded around the fireplace were plastic so we could not properly heat them, but at least rose it above what it was. We toted them into the bathroom which had both a tub and shower stall, two drains to squat over.

I giggled as I stripped down. "It's amazing. I'm not even cold," I slurred, shaking my butt in Shonnie's direction.

She hiccuped, eyes rolling back briefly. "It's 'cause we both have hypothermia, babe. Now keep your scrawny butt over there and don't watch me wash. Okay?'

I winked at her. "M'kaaaaay."

"No," she said seriously. "I mean, promise you won't turn around 'til I say so. For any reason."

I shrugged. "Yeah. No big deal."

"Promise," she demanded, suddenly agitated.

I frowned, tugging my bucket into the shower stall. "Yes. I promise."