The Virus Within: The Road Ahead (Book 1 - SERIES COMPLETED!)

Chapter 28

As the sky began to lighten, I put more wood on the fire and started sifting through our supplies.

It must have been light enough for Daniel to see me, or at least figure out what I was doing from the noise. "Since when do you make breakfast?"

"Normally never, but I want to test out a theory."

"Which theory?"

"That a big breakfast helps keep Nicky mellow. I don't think I could handle her today if she acts like she did yesterday morning."

I had grabbed certain supplies when raiding houses with this in mind, so it didn't take me long to locate everything. He watched me put a package of spaghetti noodles in the boiling water and open a couple cans of spaghetti sauce before setting them to the side. Two cans of mushrooms and a container of powdered parmesan cheese also joined the waiting pile.

"Spaghetti for breakfast? I thought Marissa's soup was breaking a few rules."

I snorted faintly. "No one is going to want me cooking anything that requires taste-testing. It should also keep Ben full for longer, so we won't have to listen to him complaining around ten o'clock."

To my surprise, he actually grinned at the mini rant. "Spaghetti will be a welcome break from soup."

I put more water in another pot to boil so it was fit for drinking purposes. As I sat back down, the wind picked up slightly. I took a deep breath, detecting far more than the now-familiar scents of the humans and Terror on the rooftop. With a frown, I turned my head to examine the dark clouds looming on the horizon.

The smell of the coming rain had been growing stronger all night, but this wasn't just a single raincloud – the dark clouds filled the entire horizon. Sticking humans in the back of a pickup truck in a downpour was almost the perfect recipe for pneumonia and other illnesses. I had a sinking feeling we weren't going anywhere today.

"What are the odds of us dragging one of those tarp car shelters up here?"

Daniel turned his head, also looking at the distant cloudbank. "Ummm... I'm not too sure. It won't fit through the staircase unless we take everything apart, and if it's too flimsy, we won't be able to toss it up here."

"Well, I don't feel like spending the day down in the store with this many people, and it's our only chance of giving them a larger shelter up here if it starts raining."

He scanned the buildings around us and pointed. "That one could fit two cars inside. It'll be big enough if we can get it up here."

"I say we bring up two of them if we can. Having more room is better than not enough."

Leaving the water to boil, I got up and headed for the larger carport. Daniel beat me there and yanked the securing pegs out of the ground.

"Let's try it. If we can get them up there, I'll go search for something to weigh down the corners. I'll also use some rope to tie it to the roof so it can't blow away," he said.

I nodded and picked up one side. The wobbly shelter twisted and swayed as we carried it back to the store. Daniel set his end down, and we went to get the second one before attempting to get them onto the roof.

"Was there rope in the store?" I asked.

"In the other one, yes. I'll go grab it."

I secured the rope to the frame and tossed the other end up to Daniel. It was easy – if a bit awkward – for him to lift them up. Once he was pulling the second one up, I headed for the stairs to check on the noodles while Daniel used rope and heavy objects to secure our new additions.