Night fell while Sofia, the children, and I carried supplies to the people reinforcing the wall. After several hours, we caught up with Greta, the girl in charge of finding a shelter where we could sleep.
Together, we explored the structures that were still standing, searching for the most suitable place to stay. In the end, we headed toward what appeared to be a fire station. It probably hadn't been used very often, since it didn't have many beds, but given the circumstances, it seemed like our best option.
The children and we women began sweeping the floor while the others got the place ready. Little by little, the survivors arrived. Tommy was the last to show up.
We lit a fire in the center of the building, right where the trucks had probably been parked. There were a few cots and old mattresses around it, so everyone looked for a place to settle in.
Tommy waited until we were all gathered before speaking.
—Gabriel is dead.
No one said a word.
—The lights came and surrounded him —he continued—. They didn't eat him. They didn't carry him away, either. They just… it looks like they absorbed the water from his body. They drained him completely, leaving him without a single drop of fluid.
A barely audible murmur passed through the room, but no one dared ask any questions. The image of Gabriel lying among the ruins, surrounded by those lights, seemed to be present in everyone's mind.
That night, we slept in silence. The children didn't ask anything. The adults simply looked for a way to curl up and rest, even if only for a few hours.
Before closing my eyes, Sofia leaned toward me.
—Tomorrow I'll show you everything around the fortress.
I nodded, but my mind was still somewhere else.
The guardian was still asleep. Strange symbols surrounded him, carved into the floor and walls of the room where we'd left him. I didn't understand what they meant or why they were there. I didn't know how long I would remain in that world, either.
But if I was going to survive, I would have to become stronger.
In the morning, Sofia woke me with an energy that seemed completely unfair.
—Abigail, wake up.
I moved sluggishly. The morning was cold, and I was far too comfortable beneath the blankets. I even had a cup of hot coffee beside the mattress, along with a serving of soft bread.
Sofia watched me with a mischievous smile and her eyes wide open, as if she expected me to do something. I had no idea what.
I took a sip of the coffee.
—What the hell…?
Sofia leaned toward me expectantly.
I took another sip. The liquid was still bitter and hot, but something about it was different.
—This is delicious.
Sofia smiled proudly.
—We found sugar in one of the houses yesterday. An entire sack.
Her eyes shone like those of a child who had just discovered a treasure.
—And you decided to use some of it in my coffee?
—Tommy said you'd earned it.
I looked at the cup in my hands. A little sugar had transformed that bitter drink into something warm and comforting. For the first time since I'd arrived in that world, the morning didn't seem completely hostile.
After breakfast, Sofia took me around the fortress. We walked among the remains of the buildings, checking the rooms that still had roofs and the houses that hadn't been completely destroyed.
She seemed determined to find any resources that might have been left hidden.
—Tommy gave us the job of searching the houses for supplies —she explained as she moved some fallen boards aside—. Though I feel like he just assigned us something to keep us busy.
—Why do you think that?
Sofia glanced at me.
—Because he probably thinks everyone else will be busy reinforcing the walls. And because, as a bonus, he can send you with me so you don't get in the way.
—How thoughtful.
—I know. Tommy has a huge heart.
I gave her an incredulous look, but she giggled and kept walking.
The fortress seemed different during the day. The ruins were still unsettling, but the light made it possible to distinguish the paths, the collapsed walls, and the marks the beasts had left on the ground. It also made it harder to pretend everything was fine.
Any corner could be hiding a corpse.
Any house could contain something useful… or something we didn't want to find.
Sofia stopped in front of a partially intact building.
—We'll start here.
She pushed the door with her shoulder. The wood opened with a long, unpleasant groan.
Inside, it smelled like dust, dampness, and something else.
Something sweet.
Sofia stopped smiling.
—What's wrong? —I asked.
She raised one hand, asking me to be quiet.
A faint sound came from the back of the house.
A knock.
Then another.
As if someone were calling from inside.
She pulled out an old oil lamp and lit it with a match. Then we moved forward cautiously. Sofia held the small knife she always kept in her boot; I picked up a thick branch from the floor and held it as if I could do anything useful with it.
We crossed the old, ruined living room, moving overturned furniture and pieces of wood out of the way. Then we went into the kitchen. There were no creatures, so we quickly searched the drawers and shelves, but we didn't find anything that could help us.
Luckily, the house only had one floor. We entered the first room. There was nothing but dust, bits of rotten wood, and disheveled bedding. Huge, heavy curtains hung from a broken window, torn by the wind blowing inside.
When we left for the next room, we heard the knock again.
One.
Then another.
Sofia and I looked at each other. This time, we didn't wait. We rushed in, convinced it couldn't be a beast. The sound was repeating too regularly. Besides, I hadn't seen a single animal since arriving in that world. If any had made it there, the beasts had probably devoured it before we could find it.
We passed through a door nearly destroyed by termites and stopped dead.
The noise wasn't being made by any creature.
It was the loose, rusted curtain rod, striking the wall every time the wind came through the broken window.
Sofia put away her knife with an expression of utter disappointment. For a moment, she seemed to have been expecting a real adventure. Then, to my surprise, she smiled.
—That was great —she said—. I can't wait to go into all the houses and see what's waiting for us.
I looked at the rod, which struck the wall again.
—If that was an adventure, our standards are pretty low.
—In this world, Abigail, we have to celebrate anything that isn't trying to kill us.
I couldn't help laughing. Sofia went ahead toward the next door, much more excited than before.
I followed her, though I never stopped watching the shadows.
Sofia pointed to the next house. It was larger than the others, and judging by the staircase visible behind the entrance, it must have had three floors.
—Let's search that one —she said, smiling as she moved ahead.
I watched her for a few seconds. I couldn't stop thinking that it would have been nice to meet her outside that place. Maybe she would have been a good friend, someone I could count on when things got difficult.
—Come on, Abigail! We have to inspect them all. Maybe we'll find something the others missed… or some candy for the kids —she shouted to me from the entrance.
I quickened my pace until I caught up with her. Then I grabbed her arm.
—I’ll do everything I can to find a way out of this place —I told her—. We have to meet out there. And when we do, we'll be friends.
Sofia lowered her gaze. I noticed tears beginning to roll down her cheeks. She quickly wiped them away with the sleeve of her sweater, then looked at me again with a trembling smile.
—Thank you.
She hugged me so tightly that she nearly left me unable to breathe. I understood perfectly what that hug meant: it wasn't just a promise to return. It was the need to believe there was still a place to go back to.
When she pulled away from me, she took my arm and began dragging me along without saying a word. Together, we headed toward the next house.
As we crossed the debris-covered courtyard, I heard her voice only one more time:
—Thank you.