An Unkind Winter (Alone Book 2) Read Online Free Page B

a lot more valuable in the long term: gold and silver bullion, jewelry and silverware.
         Every night he selected a different house. In the daylight he filled up a backpack with treasures that would ensure he was a rich man later in life. Once the backpack was full, he snuck out to the boonies a mile west, past the last housing development.
         He had a secret cave there that now held a treasure trove worth at least half a million bucks.
         After adding his loot to the pile, he simply slept in a tent not far from the cave. He’d wake up in the hours of darkness and do it all again.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    -6-
     
         Dave spent much of the day gathering water bottles from around the house.
         In the two and a half years preceding the blackout, they’d saved hundreds of two liter plastic soda bottles. And maybe a hundred gallon milk jugs. Now, they were filled with water, and distributed all over the house: inside the interior walls, hidden behind the clothing in the closets, inside mattresses he’d hollowed out. Every little nook and cranny in the house held either dried food or water.
         He even had a hundred such bottles stored in the Hansen house.
         The problem with the water bottles was that they wouldn’t survive the first hard freeze. He’d filled each bottle to the top, in an effort to stockpile as much rainwater as he possibly could.
         Now, though, it was apparent he’d shot himself in the foot. He knew that the water in the bottles would expand when the temperature dropped below freezing. With each bottle full, there simply was no room for expansion. Each bottle would burst.
         And that wasn’t acceptable. If the bottles burst, not only would he lose the water within them. He’d also lose the bottle, and therefore the capability of stockpiling more water after the winter was over. In addition, he’d have water damage all over the house, wherever the bottles were stored.
         Toward the end of the day, at just about twilight, he went into his back yard and crawled through the fence to the Castro house next door.
         The Castros bugged out not long after the crisis had begun. He’d seen them leave, with backpacks and suitcases, walking down the street. One of the children pulled a little red wagon full of belongings behind him.
         For a long time, Dave stayed away from the Castros’ house. He wasn’t sure if they were coming back, and he didn’t want to violate the sanctity of their home. They were good people and they didn’t deserve the heartache of coming back and finding that all of their things had been rifled through.
         Finally, though, his curiosity got the best of him, and he went to investigate. He’d found the back door open, which was curious.
         Even more curious was what he found inside the house. The front door was also unlocked, and the window next to it was broken. There was no water or edible food in the house. The family had exhausted all of that, or taken it with them.
         And on the table, there was a note.
     
         With heavy heart, we are leaving our home, and do not expect to return. We have gone to live with friends. They are what we once called “preppers.” We used to tease them. We used to say they were wasting their time. Now it appears they were smarter than all of us. And thankfully they’re good people, for despite our teasing they have asked us to join them.
         We leave behind everything except a few clothes and family heirlooms. Our other things no longer seem to have the value they once did. Feel free to make use of whatever you need. It’s no longer doing us any good.
         May God have mercy on us all.
    Jack and Eva Castro
     
         The gesture had touched Dave’s heart. He’d always thought his next door neighbors were good people. They always had a warm smile and a kind word. But he and Sarah had purposely