Chapter 91- Pine

The tires spun and slid as I declined into the small valley. Shaped like a bowl, the rim rose rockily around the edge and disappeared into the dark grey sky. In the center sat a small cabin, the familiar orange of firelight flickering in the window. My heart leapt in my chest, was this truly the end of my journey?  I drove steadily downward, carefully gauging my speed to keep from sliding into a tree or off the edge of the sodden road. I flashed my brights back and forth, hoping to get her attention as I approached. 

What defenses, if any, had she prepared?  Would there be a fence?  A trench? A row of pikes surrounding the cabin like the compound of some military compound in medieval days?  Had the infected even made their way to this point, and if so, we're they wandering outside the cabin now?  More scenarios raced through my brain as the road leveled out. I didn't want to place her in more danger but also wanted to avoid it myself if I could. 

The trees were more sparse as J got nearer, probably from being felled to build the walls and roof of the solid structure. I could see the cabin ahead, and the silhouette of a person appeared in front of a window. It watched for a moment and I flashed my headlights twice, hoping that was enough of a signal to show I was not only friendly, but expected. The figure disappeared but the front door did not open.  

I slowed to a stop about ten feet from the door.  The walls were made from thick pine trunks, and a window was fashioned from glass bricks, enough to let light in but impossible to see clearly from within. To the right an old jeep Cherokee sat parked, a tarp covering the roof and windshield. A makeshift car port covered it but holes throughout poured water onto the car, pooling in great puddles and running off the edge as it overflowed. 

I turned the van off and reached for my gun. Would I need it?  I debated for a moment and then left it propped against the seat. Opening the door I stood up in the doorway, breathing in the fresh rain and the clean mountain air. "Tracy!" I called out as loud as I dared. If there were walkers nearby I didn't want to attract them.  "Tracy it's me!" I felt my excitement rise as I stared at the doorway, but a feeling of dread creeped in as it remained closed.  "Tracy, are you there?" I called out, this time my voice softer and less sure. 

I felt a hard tug on the back of my jacket and was pulled from my perch and onto my back in the mud. Something leapt on me forcefully and I was about to fight back when I smelled the familiar scent of the woman I loved. Her hair was wet and I could hear her sobbing. "It's you!" She called out in the rain.  "It's really you!"  She wrapped her arms around me and kissed me, her lips wet from rain and tears. I pulled her close and we held each other tightly.  Mud seeped down my collar and chilled my back, it filled my shoes and soaked my jacket but I didn't care. In this whole horrible world I had finally found the only thing I cared about.