Chapter 16
Squeezing her backpack strap in her hand, Lareina squinted ahead at a line of trees interspersed with the shadowy outlines of buildings. As she drew nearer, what she thought had been a town became a house surrounded by sheds and a barn. She understood the risks she faced by stepping onto that property, but continued her course anyway. As much as she wanted to avoid contact with people, she couldn’t survive much longer without help. The sight of a house gave her hope that she hadn’t been walking in circles after all, but also beckoned as a possible shelter from increasingly treacherous weather.
The past three days had left her lost, exhausted, and out of food. Rain drenched her and the nighttime temperatures were uncomfortably cold. Afraid of hypothermia, she barely slept and d
