I Love You So

Part 46

"I don't see why you're being so rude, Amanda." Shane said, "You don't get to be rude to me, not after all we've been through."

"After all we've been through or after all you've put me through?" Amanda asked

"Oh, no, don't give me that nonsense." Shane said, picking up a rock. He broke the back window to another store, clearing the shards so they could climb through

"What nonsense, Shane?" Amanda laughed, watching Shane climbed into the window

Shane held his hand out, helping Amanda climb inside, "You had a baby with my best friend, Amanda!"

Amanda laughed louder, "Shane, you were in love with Lori!" She argued

"But she wasn't your best friend." Shane retorted, "That's my brother, Amanda. You broke up years of friendship."

Amanda was in such disbelief that she laughed again, "You're delusional, Shane." She said, looking around the store. Amanda walked down the aisles, seeing someone had made a small barricade using shelves, "Hello?" She asked, walking around the shelves quietly, "Shane, hoist me up."

Shane nodded, walking over. He picked Amanda up, helping her climb over, "What do you see?"

Amanda inhaled softly as she looked at the young couple who had committed suicide. She felt her heart break, her mind flickering over to the thought of Rick. She wondered how bad their lives must've been to commit suicide - or if one of them was bit and the other couldn't bear the idea of being alone. Amanda's eyes began to water as she looked at her ring, thinking of poor, sweet Rick. She wondered how things were going with The Saviors, and if the mission was successful. She also wondered if Rick even realized she was gone.

"Mandy? Come back to earth." Shane said as he tugged on her leg

"Sorry." Amanda said, climbing down, "I'm good." She said, moving the shelves. She walked inside, kneeling down by the bodies, prying the pistol out of the young man's hand, cringing at the feeling of rigor-mortis in his fingers. Amanda's grabbed a duffle bag, looking inside, "Some food in here." She said, handing the bag to Shane before she kept digging around. She noted a small knife in the belt of the woman. Amanda glanced back at Shane, who was digging through  the bag of food. She quickly grabbed the knife, sliding it into her own belt before she adjusted her shirt to cover it, "That's it." She said, standing up.

Shane nodded, looking at Amanda, "Let's go." He said, leading her through the store and into the main area in the mall. He glanced around before he looked at the ceiling, noting a helicopter was hanging from the roof, caught in some wires, "Must've been a refuge camp." He said as he walked down with Amanda, looking at the rows of empty cots

"It's so empty." Amanda said, looking around, "Maybe the mall has a generator in the basement we can use." She noted, walking towards a door that said 'RESTRICTED AREA - EMPLOYEES ONLY'

Shane pushed the door open, groaning at the weight of heavy boxes that were barricading the door, "Something's gotta be back here." He noted, propping the door open so the light could shine through

Amanda nodded as she squeezed through the door, swallowing hard, "It's so dark." She said, furrowing her eyebrows as she lead Shane down the hallway. She glanced at a wooden crate, relaxing when she saw a flashlight. She flicked the button, smacking it against her palm as the light began to shine. Amanda looked at the wet floor, exhaling as she noticed that the area was flooded a few feet ahead, gradually getting deeper. Amanda walked through, sighing as the water got just beneath her breasts, trucking through quietly.

"There, there's a generator." Shane said, leading Amanda to a ramp, walking onto the platform. He shook his hands dry, wiping them on the top of his shirt before he grabbed the handle, yanking the cord a few times