Free Forager (9781771275606) by Ron Scheer

didn’t
have any glass to replace it.
    I’d wasted so much time trying to get in that Josh was closing
the door on the house he’d been searching. “What’s the deal, Orphan
Boy?”
    “ I can’t get in. It’s locked.”
    “ No problem.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small
pocketknife. He went to the front door and slid the blade between
the doorjamb and the lock. With a quick twist of his wrist the door
sprang open.
    “ Where’d you learn how to do that?” I asked.
    “ Never mind, Orphan Boy. Just get in there and search the
place.”
    Walking inside, I considered how easily Josh had defeated the
lock. The twist of his wrist was so practiced it could have only
come from experience. Why was he breaking into empty
houses?
    The answer was staring back at me—this house wasn’t empty.
White sheets covered what looked like a pair of recliners and a
couch. A dust-covered coffee table rested between the furniture,
and on the far wall sat an entertainment center with a large
TV.
    I stood there stunned. None of this stuff should be here. All
of it should have been cached.
    “ Chane! Chane are you here?” I called.
    Searching from room to room,. I took in the furniture,
appliances, and other possessions that made up the life of the
former owner. The beds were complete with pillows and comforters.
The kitchen was equipped with a refrigerator, stove, microwave, and
other smaller items I couldn’t identify. In the basement stood a
beautiful claw-footed pool table, complete with cues and
balls.
    I found many things, but one thing eluded me. Chane wasn’t
here.
    Before I left, I made sure to release the locks on the doors.
I wanted to come back and explore this house further, after Chane
was found.
    Why hadn’t this house been emptied? Had it simply gotten
missed in the caching? Was it left this way on purpose? By the
amount of dust, no one had entered in a long time. I liked my RV,
but nothing forced me to live there. As long as a house was
unoccupied, it was fair game for whoever wanted it. This house and
its contents made my heart thump.
    I closed the front door. Kurt and Jason were waiting out on
the walk. “What took you so long?” Jason asked.
    “ I had to use the restroom,” I lied.
    “ Whatever. Let’s keep searching. We’ve got to find Chane,” he
said.
    We continued north of Chane’s mom’s place. I found two more
locked houses. Josh located a pry bar and showed me how to use it
to force the doors. Both of the locked houses were also fully
furnished.
    Those three houses made me wonder how thorough the caching
had been. I couldn’t be the only searcher finding these intact
houses. Why were they still furnished? Answers would be nice, but not at the expense of having
everything cached. At least not until I’d had a chance to
explore.
    An hour later, we began searching the houses on my block. My
throat was dry and hoarse from repeatedly calling for
Chane.
    My RV rested two houses down from the one I was
searching. No way were any of my fellow
searchers getting in my trailer. I had nothing to hide, I just didn’t want
them tearing my place apart—which knowing Josh and Jason, was a
real possibility.
    “ That’s my place.” I pointed to the charcoal RV. “I’ll make
sure Chane isn’t in there. I should check in on the Forager, too.
Dr. White told me to look after him.”
    “ Not alone you’re not!” Josh growled. “There’s no way I’m
letting you hide my sister.”
    “ She’s not in there, Josh.”
    Kurt stepped up. “I’ll go in with him. You two,” he pointed at
Josh and Jason, “keep searching.”
    Having Kurt in my RV wasn’t any better than Josh or Jason, but
I couldn’t do anything about it. “Fine, let’s go,” I
said.
    We entered the RV. Sawyer lifted his head from a
pillow.
    Kurt sneered, and his irritation could clearly be heard in his
voice. “Some Forager you are, asleep on the couch while the rest of
us spend the day searching for the mayor’s