I stared idly at the scenery while our human companions ate their breakfast. Many humans had stopped in this house. A few scents I recognized from our Stronghold, but most were strangers I had never met. That didn't surprise me considering how far we were from Ironwind Stronghold.

It was more surprising that I actually recognized three scents from Ironwind Stronghold. I took a slow deep breath as I tried to place them. Two were from a group that occasionally went trading. One was a guy I had never spoken to, but I was pretty sure he did a lot of traveling.

My instincts shifted as they picked up something out of place. I took another deep breath as I tried to figure out what tipped off my suspicious instincts. I closed my eyes as I focused on the world of scent. It wasn't anything outside, or I would have noticed it while I was outside. That narrowed it down by a fair bit.

Several more breaths didn't yield any results either. I was getting frustrated as I failed to see what my instincts were detecting. Sometimes the easiest way to find the answer was to actually focus less and just let your mind wander. I opened my eyes and took slow breaths as I just tried to loosen up my concentration.

The smell of soup was prominent. As was the rather sharp scent of the Terror that was still watching me. I could pick up hints of the mice in the walls. There were a few bats in the attic along with a bee's nest.

Nina was wearing that odd flowery perfume that somehow almost masked her human scent. Nicky was wearing her socks from yesterday and was trying to sneak a handful of peanuts out of her backpack without Nina noticing.

A bag of beans in one of our bags was at the point where it might start growing mold. My instincts flared and my mind honed in with sudden suspicion. We hadn't packed any beans. I turned as I slowly crossed the kitchen floor to a different side window while testing the air.

It was stronger halfway along my path. I peeked in the one cupboard, but as I had expected, there was no food to be found. The scent was not coming from behind the cupboard doors either. It might have just been a bag of beans, but I was determined to find them. So many people passed through here that anything edible should be long gone by now and this had to be a large bag of beans from the smell of it. It didn't make sense and contradictions like this tended to catch my interest.

Daniel noticed that something had caught my attention and he was watching me in curiosity from his seat. I slowly walked across the kitchen again toward the first window. I turned and examined the room as a hunch grew stronger. Why was the smell the strongest in the middle of the floor?

I scrutinized the floor in suspicion. The old black and white linoleum tiles were fairly dirty. My sharp eyesight saw that the gap between several tiles was larger than the rest. I walked over to the gap and a faint creak in the floor told me that my intuition was likely correct.

I doubted that this was just a squeaky board in the floor. I was quite certain that there was a well-hidden trapdoor here. There had to be a handle hold of some sort to allow people to open it. This house wasn't that fancy or expensive, so it was unlikely to have anything high tech. The creak had also told me which side of the gap the door was on. I just needed to discover which end lifted up and how to do so.

A glint of metal in the one joint caught my attention. I crouched down as I examined it. That motion caught both Nicky and Nina's attention and they watched me in confusion. Daniel was watching me intently. I probably look like a right idiot who might be watching an ant.

It looked like a paperclip was wedged into the gap. The tip of my fingernail lifted it halfway out before encountering resistance. A firm pull yielded a click and showed that a thin cord was tied to the paper clip. The click resulted in the trapdoor lifting slightly as the latch no longer held it firmly down.

My fingernails easily found purchase on the edge and lifted it up. Stale air and various scents wafted up as I lifted the trapdoor. Footsteps told me that all three were coming to investigate my unexpected find. I pushed the door until it wouldn't open anymore. It opened far enough that it leaned to the other side and remained open.

Daniel eyed up the dark hole in the floor in disfavor. Nicky peered down into the blackness in curiosity, "Any idea what's down there?"

"One way to find out." I ignored the ladder as I stepped off the edge to drop down to the rough wooden plank floor below. Those above could see me with the light that came in the windows behind them, but that was about it. I turned on the spot as I swiftly looked around.

I glanced up, "Looks like storage for things they rarely used. I will take a quick peek."

I ducked under a floor truss as I went over to the shelves along the wall. The ceiling couldn't have been more than six feet high and in some places even I had to duck under support beams.

The shelves were the source of the smell of old beans. One bag on the floor had gotten faintly damp. Additional bags on the shelf were fine. This family had been a fan of canning their own food and numerous jars filled the shelves. Three closed doors were on the other side of the room.

I took a precautionary sniff before opening the first one. Spare bedding and boxes of odds and ends lined the shelves in this room. The second room resembled an odd wood shop with dozens of small barrels in various stages of construction.

I paused as I opened up the third door. Shit. I think we just found a moonshine factory... This room was much larger than the others. A dozen large stills were set up and half of the room looked more like a lab than a rural beer shop. I wonder if Nina could use any of this equipment?

I headed back to the trapdoor and climbed up the ladder to stick my head out, "Hey Nina, would you possibly be able to use anything from a moonshine lab? Some of the stuff in the one room looks somewhat sciency."

Nina turned to Daniel, "Can I borrow your flashlight?"

Daniel already had his flashlight in his hands, "I'll come down too."

This surprised Nina. For that matter, I had not expected it either. It didn't occur to me that Daniel would enter that trapdoor with his aversion to dark narrow spaces. He must have seen that it was an open room below and that could have been sufficient. He had entered that one cave to find me, although he refused to enter that feral's tiny dwelling. Maybe it was because this was a building.

I looked at Daniel, "It is clear down there other than the odd mouse or two. Do you want me down there or up here?"

"Up here."

I had assumed that, so it didn't come as a surprise. He wouldn't want a Nightstalker in a dark place he was entering if he had any other option. I climbed up the rest of the way and headed over to the kitchen window off to the side.

Daniel turned his flashlight to the max and it easily lit up anything it was pointed toward. After a few seconds he jumped down into the now-lit area. Nina quickly descended the ladder until she was out of my sight. I remained where I was since I knew what was down there and it didn't interest me.

Nicky yawned and went back for seconds of the soup. I checked a few more kitchen cupboards in boredom, carefully scenting the air and looking for any other oddities in case there were more hidey holes.

I pocketed a tiny jar. I could use it to carry some blood to dress that cut in my arm. Just because I very rarely had difficulties in making a kill, didn't mean that I was always successful. Bad weather often sent animals into hiding. Rabbit burrows could easily be deep and larger animals were sometimes not that common in certain areas.

There had been a night or two in the past where I had ended up going after much smaller prey like rats or tiny quail. I had even tried fish blood once and I vowed that I would never repeat that experience again. When I had been human, I had loved battered or fried fish. Fish blood was slimy, musky, and left a foul lingering taste in my mouth as a zombie.

I didn't find anything else of interest, although from the noises below, Nina was having a great scavenger hunt downstairs. I went over to sit by Nicky while waiting for the other two to resurface.

"You didn't bring me any moonshine?"

If I thought Nicky was bad with just a cup of coffee, then I didn't even want to contemplate what an alcoholic beverage might do. I shook my head and lied, "There was none down there. Just the stills and whatever they were using to check the quality."

"Hmmm.... The best way to check the quality is to drink it. I bet they had some wicked parties in this place with that stuff on tap."

Footsteps on the ladder showed that Nina had finished. She had a bucket with a bunch of items in it as she climbed up the ladder. Daniel waited until she was out of the way and simply jumped straight up. Show off.

Daniel had several bags of stuff that he put down before going back down for another load. I tilted my head, "Find anything good down there?"

Nina glanced at the stuff with a grin, "That had been a very sophisticated setup for a rural moonshine operation. Some stuff I had been running low on and there were even a few things that I didn't have." She glanced at me in curiosity, "How did you find that trapdoor?"

I shrugged, "I picked up a scent that just didn't make sense."

"What scent?"

I smirked, "There is a bag of beans down there that is just starting to grow mold. We didn't pack beans and I couldn't see any travelers leaving anything that resembled food. It would have to have been very well hidden for this many travelers to miss it, so there might have been other things with it."

Nina blinked in surprise before rummaging through a closet for cardboard boxes and any rags that would work as padding for some of the more delicate objects she has found. Daniel finished his last trip and closed the trap door. He stepped on it and it closed with a click as the paperclip once more fell into the crack.

Nicky started washing her bowl, so I took that as my signal to begin carrying stuff out to the truck.

~

I leaned against the tailgate as I absently watched the road ahead of us. Nina turned around in the front seat of the cab to look through the open window in the back of the truck, "Do you smell anything yet?"

I blinked slowly at the stupid question. With my sense of smell, my world was halfway made up of scent. I decided to avoid an overly sarcastic response this early in the day. "You are going to have to be more specific."

"Are there any Nightstalkers around? We aren't that far from where the rumors reported it."

I took a deep breath once more and thoroughly checked for any zombie scents, "The only Nightstalkers I am scenting are those three musketeers from the other day, although it is pretty faint. Several Runners and a couple dozen regular zombies."

Nina nodded although she looked somewhat disappointed. She must be the only human out there who was disappointed when she didn't find a feral Nightstalker. I was seriously beginning to wonder if Nicky's questionable judgment was contagious. It could also explain what I was doing in the back of the truck with this group again.

The smell of permanent felt markers made me wrinkle my nose. I turned to look suspiciously at Nicky, I had not been aware that she had brought those felts along for the ride. This was the first time she had taken them out.

I shook my head as I realized how she planned to pass the time today. Nicky had somehow managed to get a spare pair of socks out of Daniel's bag and was ensuring they would match his shoes. I shook my head with a sigh, if Daniel didn't want to wear the colorful socks, then he would just have to wear a pair of socks two days in a row. Or wash an old pair in a bucket of water and let them dry.

I didn't have enough ambition to intervene when it was just a pair of socks at stake. It guaranteed a couple hours of peace and quiet with Nicky and that was more than worth a pair of socks. I would even give her a pair of mine if it kept her amused. I wouldn't be wearing them afterwards though.

Around lunchtime Nicky managed to finish one sock and was diligently working on the other one.

We pulled up in front of what looked like an overgrown wooden tree fort with a tall chain link fence surrounding it. I had to give credit to whoever built it though, the rope ladder would stop Runners even if they did get over the chain link fence.

A large empty firepit was below. If they had a bonfire going all night, that would keep any Nightstalkers at bay. Someone had put thought into building this place. My nose told me that although no one was here currently, it was a popular rest stop.

Nina got out of the truck and looked at me, "Anything?"

I shook my head, "No one is home at the moment and the only Nightstalkers that scoped this place out were the ones we already encountered. I don't scent a feral upwind either."

Nina nodded in disappointment and looked at Daniel, "I don't see any real reason to stop here then. Feel like continuing down the road? We can keep going south just to be sure, but I have a feeling that this is going to be an empty trip unless we stop at another Stronghold to visit."

Daniel glanced at Nicky and me before shaking his head, "I don't think visiting a Stronghold is wise with those two in the back."

As much as I didn't even want to see another Stronghold, the way that Daniel said it 'wasn't wise' sounded far too much like we would be the ones to cause trouble. That irritated me a bit since I never caused problems intentionally. I just didn't like crowds or strangers, which would be a guarantee.

Daniel took a noticeable sniff of the air before focusing on Nicky in suspicion. She had been smart enough to hide both the socks and the markers when we had stopped, but that didn't help with the lingering fumes. He growled in suspicion, "What were you coloring?"

Nicky gave him a confused look, "No idea what you are talking about." Her acting was pretty good, but not good enough with the pungent scent of markers lingering in the air. I could easily smell the lie as well.

His eyes flashed red briefly in warning, "I can smell the felts. Now what were you coloring?"

"None of your business. They are my felts now. Trinity should have never given them to me. I get plenty of inspiration for coloring whenever I am around either of you two."

Why did she drag me into this? Nicky's words and tone were not helping with Daniel's mood, although after the stunt Nicky had pulled last time, I could kind of see where he was coming from. He seemed out of sorts today as well for some reason.

Nina decided to try a different tactic, "I love your coloring ability, although I doubt you can color that well in the back of a bumpy truck. Can you show me what you did so far?"

The combination of flattery and possible doubt of her skill had Nicky pulling out a rather colorful sock for display. Daniel instantly recognized his sock and growled in aggravation at Nicky. I growled faintly in reply and narrowed my eyes as Daniel turned his focus to me. His eyes went red as his instincts did not appreciate the challenge.

My tone was clipped, "It was just a pair of socks. I will find another pair for you later. She can color a pair of mine next."

Daniel narrowed his eyes in displeasure. I didn't look away from him and I knew it would rub his instincts completely the wrong way. Nina was looking between the two of us in concern. She tried to break up the slowly building quarrel, "How about we keep driving? The damage is done and Trinity will keep Nicky away from your stuff."

Daniel turned with a huff as he got back into the driver's seat in a surly mood. I was glad that I wasn't the one riding in the cab with him. The tires spun a bit with his peeved acceleration. I could see the back of his head through the window and some of his face in the rearview mirror.

He was pointedly not looking at us in the mirrors. I wasn't sure what had started this tiff of his, but it was odd to see the normally restrained Terror get irritated so easily with a human. I could understand him growling at me at the drop of a hat since I was a zombie, but his control around humans was usually impeccable.

My instincts didn't understand this slight change and neither did I. Daniel hadn't been this upset when Nicky had colored his shoes, so something else was bugging him and this had just pushed his temper a bit further up the temperature gauge. Admittedly, having me purposefully vexing his instincts probably hadn't helped any.

"Okay, where are your socks?"

With a sigh I dug into my backpack to toss Nicky a pair of light gray socks. I wasn't sure why she was after them yet since she hadn't finished Daniel's last sock. I caught a glimpse of Daniel's eyes in the rearview mirror.

They had a noticeable tinge of orange in his customary brown. Either he wasn't controlling his eye color as much as usual or he was peeved about something. My bet was on the latter option. My disrespectful challenge had probably irked him and it was going to take some time for him to cool down. Nicky's obsession with turning his wardrobe into a rainbow was just icing on the cake.

This was going to be a long ride.