Free Finding Eden by Megan Dinsdale

laughed, but continued to chew on my piece. “That’s all I ask for.”
     
    We reached the next safepoint with a few hours to spare. It was practically identical to the last, sans a coyote. Tex excavated the supply box from the ground and it had all the same items in it. We each devoured two MREs and I shared a bag of stale sour cream and onion chips.
    I laid out the blanket, which thankfully was a little bit thicker and softer this time. I took a seat and unbraided my hair. Without my brush, I had to use my fingers, so I combed them through my hair until I was satisfied with the results. I quickly glanced in Tex’s direction and caught him watching me. I wasn’t sure why he found me untangling my hair interesting, but to each their own I supposed.
    Tex sat down on the very edge of the blanket. Again. He was rifling through his bag when he pulled out a deck of cards and waved it in the air, teasing me with them.
    “ You have no idea how sick I am of playing cards.” I groaned.
    “ You’re going to forfeit before I even propose a challenge?” He crawled over and sat cross-legged in front of me. Our knees almost touched. I was surprised because that was the closest he had ever willingly got.
    “ Tex ,” I snorted. “I already know I’m going to win, so before you even ask, I just want you to know you’re committing suicide.”
    “ What makes you so sure, Blondie ?”
    “ Well, it’s probably the fact that I’ve lived alone for almost five years and had nothing but playing cards and board games to keep me busy. I’ve perfected my skills.”
    He laughed and started to deal the cards. “If you are constantly playing yourself—the same skill level every time —then you’ll never improve.”
    I frowned and gestured towards the cards. “Well?”
    “ The name of the game is War.”
    “ Really, Tex? War ?”
    “ Got a problem with that?”
    I shrugged and picked up my stack of cards, placing my thumb on the top one. “No, but you will.”
     
    Tex’s stack of cards dwindled down to just a few, while I had about ninety-eight percent of the deck. I was about to take his final card—a two—with my queen, when the world around us began to shake.
    I remembered the small earthquakes we’d get in San Diego years ago. The biggest I'd ever experienced before this world went to hell was probably a 5.0, but this was well beyond that. This was a breed of its own, beyond even the tremors that had produced the tsunami. The jolts were so violent that I began to toss and turn on the earthen floor. The cave walls cracked in a hundred tiny fissures until sharp stone pieces started to break away from the ceiling and fall to the ground around us.
    “ Shit!” Tex yelled over the deafening noise. I watched him grab his backpack and hold it over his head. I went to do the same, but was unfortunately too late; a falling rock rocketed at my head, knocking me off balance. I fell onto my butt and instinctively pressed my hand against the offending pain the stone caused. I felt something warm and sticky.
    “ Crap,” I winced as I pulled my hand back, examining the red mess.
    “ Holy shit! Are you okay?” He held his backpack over me, leaving him wide open.
    I felt a little dizzy, but didn’t admit to it. I shoved his bag away and replaced it with my own. I felt impact after impact against it. We were both standing now and it took everything I had to keep my balance. Even then, I lost it a few times.
    The tremors didn’t stop or slow down—they increased. This seemed to cause the cracks in the wall to shift, breaking apart the entire cave.
    “ If we stay here any longer, we’re going to get flattened.” Tex grabbed my arm and pulled me towards the exit, all the while dodging the stone missiles.
    We made our way to the mouth of the cave and I felt something smash into my shoulder. I cried out before I could even think about muffling the sound. I didn’t need Tex to worry about me now. We had to look after ourselves in a