Lara returned to the brick structure she had slept in last night. She opened up her blanket of food and supplies she foraged from trash cans and dumpsters and went through them. She looked at the paperback novel she found.
"Mistress Night" was the title, and depicted a dark haired woman wearing a long flowing black gown with a seductive smile.
She laid the torn, muddied blanket over the bedding of leaves, and rested on it to read her book.
"Catherine never doubted her destiny in the face of mounting adversity from Father Andantes. The promises that went broken, the sacrifices that went unrewarded, and her faith that went unrecognized, all seemed to point to one conclusion, that there was yet another chapter waiting to unfold. Catherine was ready to define herself."
Somehow, that paragraph in the second chapter of the book seemed to resonate with Lara. She stopped to think about what it meant.
But suddenly something else caused her to stop and think. The faint sounds of people chattering in the distance. Lara carefully crawled to the opening of her tiny brick shelter and raised her head just far enough to see what was going on. She looked in all directions, but couldn't see anything. The chattering seemed to stop.
Lara realized that this area is still well populated with campers and hikers. Someone would eventually see her brick structure and investigate. They would then find her bedding and stash of food and supplies. It became clear that she couldn't stay here for long.
She decided it would be wise to gather up her supplies into the blanket yet again and search for another abandoned building that afforded more privacy.
An hour went by and Lara found herself about a quarter mile deeper into the woods from the small brick structure. The trees were more numerous and the sun found it more difficult to penetrate the canopy. Lara spotted an area fraught with tall ferns and ivy and sought to investigate.
The tall ferns turned out not to be tall at all. They were instead growing on top of an old cinder block shack, much like the one Lucy had lived in, but smaller. A tree had fallen over and leaned up against the shack as its dead branches completely enveloped the structure. Ferns and ivy grew through the branches totally concealing the shack behind greens leaves, making it look like a large bushy mass.
Lara found the entrance to the house. Inside was still dirty, very musty smelling, but largely habitable. It appeared as if no one had been inside it for years.
Here was a place, she thought, she could live for a long time, perhaps even through the coming winter.
She gathered up more branches to make a new bedding. She even able to find a branch she could use a broom to sweep out debris. She assembled her bedding, laying her blanket on top. She sat down finally, took in a few deep breaths, and felt confident she had a home to live in.
Lara felt more satisfied with this new structure. It felt more solid and concealed itself pretty well. She laid down on her bedding and thought about the possibilities of staying here for a long time. Once again she closed her eyes, found a comfortable position, and found her clitoris waiting to take her into place deep inside her world of memories and fantasies.
Early next morning, just as the sun was starting to rise, she breakfasted on the other remaining food she still had left, and drank the rest of the water bottles. She picked up her blanket, wrapped the empty bottles inside, and set out for the campground which was just over a mile away. Her first stop was the picnic area to fill the bottles with clean water. Her next stop, was the dumpster at the campground.
It seemed to be good way of life, considering she could live without money, without clothing, and without having to maintain a job with responsibilities. She hoped to find more blankets, however.
Her small cinder block home camouflaged under branches and ferns contained a nice appointment of supplies. She found several paper towels and napkins, a growing supply of snack foods. She even collected a bottle of pain relievers as well as a growing library of books and pamphlets. Eventually, she did find some more blankets, along with a pillow, and even a few articles of clothing she used as bedding, all courtesy of National Forest Service trash bins.
Her daily ritual always started an hour before sunrise, early enough to make her way to the lake to bathe, and then forage through the trash cans before the public came out. She'd fill up water bottles at the faucet, read books and pamphlets for her entertainment, and explore the deeper woods when she was bored. She got to know the area really well.
Lara never forgot Lucy, however.
She knew she was still an afternoon's walk back to her house, and she felt confident she could find the trail that led there. But she feared Lucy had become overly protective of her. She didn't want to put Lucy in danger of the police.
She decided if it got too cold, she could always go back to her. But for now, it might be better to stay here for awhile.
