Free Disappearance by Ryan Wiley Page B

assess the damages. When I get out, I'm surprised to see the sliding glass door has been smashed all the way through. The frame of the door is severely bent, but the glass has shattered enough for me to at least make an entrance. Before I assess the car's damage, I close my eyes and take a deep breathe. "No matter what, it was worth it. I have no other choice," I tell myself. I walk over and see the middle of the trunk is smashed upward, although only by a few inches and it's impossible for me to notice while driving. It's something I would definitely get repaired, but, all things considered, I'm pleased with how little damage there is.
    I take my shovel and jab out the remaining glass. I go back to the car to grab my flashlight and then make my way inside.
    It's dark, but there's still some light coming in through the front door. A flashlight though makes the job a lot easier.
    I go through my list of things I want to get: batteries for the flashlight, gas jugs, a gas siphon, an ax, guns and ammo, a car map, lots of peanut butter, lots of cereal, lots of bottled water, and any other food I see that's edible at room temperature.
    I grab a shopping cart and go through the empty isles. As always, I head down the non-food isles first and start by grabbing a gas tank. I debate whether I should grab another, then I realize, at the price of free, I might as well err on the side of caution and grab one more. Next to the gas tanks are gas siphons. I grab a couple of those as well (just in case one gets dirty).
    Next is the hunting area. I've never actually walked through here before, but it doesn't take long before I realize they don't sell guns. They have all the hunting accessories you could possibly imagine but no guns. This is disappointing news. I try to recall any gun stores nearby but can't think of any.
    As I walk around the rest of the hunting area I do notice they have BB and pellet guns. It wasn't what I was hoping for, but it will have to do. I know nothing about these guns except that pellet guns are more powerful than BB guns. They have three different versions, so I grab the one with the biggest box. Fortunately, it looks like there's only one type of pellet ammo, so at least I won't worry about getting the wrong type.
    Next on my list is an ax, which I have no clue where to find. After walking down several aisles for about fifteen minutes, I do locate one. There's only one choice, and it's not the big burly ax I was imagining for serious destruction. It's small with the blade not much farther than the handle. Again though, it's better than nothing.
    Even though I've never actually read a map before, I figure I should pick one up. My entire driving life has consisted of printing off Mapquest directions, then graduating to GPS devices. I've never had the need to take out a map and plot how to get to my destination before. Working with a map seems so primitive; I can't imagine how difficult life was before the Internet. Millions of arguments must have been saved on family vacations by a little gadget telling you step-by-step how to get there.
    When I get to the maps section, I'm amazed at how many there are. Since I'm not paying today, I grab any and every map I think I might possibly need.
    Now it's food and drink time. I go back to the front and grab another cart, making sure to start with several twenty-four-pack cases of bottled water.
    The next aisle is for cereal. I get excited and grab all the healthy, organic stuff I always think about trying but never do. Before I know it, I have about fifteen to twenty bags of various kinds of cereal stuffed in my cart, seeing this makes my mouth water. I wonder why I'm so hungry and then realize I haven't had much to eat in the past twenty-four hours.
    I go down the bread aisle and am pleased to see there are still some loaves that don't expire for another week. I also grab a couple jars of peanut butter, which are high in calories -- exactly what I need for my no-cooking