You could follow that smell, and the flies, to…to what? Whatever poisoned Clay, maybe. You start cautiously, following a huge droning fly…and immediately sink knee-deep into cold muck. You try twice more, but this marsh is a deadly maze, and the sun is setting. You're sure that if you could follow that rancid stink back to its source, you'd find what you came here for. But you need some kind of guide, or you'll die out here. You need more information. You turn away from the marsh and head back into the woods.
The sun has set and it's bitterly cold and windy by the time you reach the Veterans Hospital. You warm up in the garden center before the bus comes.
Still without shelter, you head back to the abandoned house, but then you spot a police SUV sitting with its lights off across the street. You fade back into the tangle of woods and fields that exist off the Map and hurry across town as the temperature drops until you reach a shipping container you noticed earlier. You repeat your trick with free newspapers and broken sticks. The fire this time gives off foul black smoke, and barely warms the metal container, but you're still able to get a few hours of sleep.
Freezing rain in the night: when you awaken in the morning, the world is frozen and sparkling. Shimmering little rills of melting water run past your tall boots. You can't stop shaking, even after a half-hour of moving around. This can't go on. You need shelter.
Next