From the journal of Rebecca Martin, May 11

May 11, 2017

We listened this morning to the sound of the bikers rumbling out of town. Last night, no one got much sleep because we were all worried they might send people out to check out the entire town, but they didn't. They had parked their bikes in front of a liqueur store and they stayed there the rest of the day and all night, drinking and hooting and shooting their guns into the air. At least, I hope they were shooting into the air and not at each other or other survivors in this town. The sounds died down around daybreak and then four hours later, they were riding out of town in the direction we want to head in, as well.

We stayed really quiet and didn't have any lights in any rooms near the front, just in case a crack of light gave us away. I know we were being paranoid, but better paranoid than dead or taken captive. Those bikers don't seem like the nice sort, so the women here know what would happen to them. They might not even spare the elderly women from their intentions, so we couldn't take any chances.
We got together as a group when we heard the bikes leaving to decide what our next  steps were going to be. We knew where the trailer was waiting and had piles of supplies ready to go by the back door. But did we really want to go in the same direction that the bikers were going in? They could set themselves up in a traffic jam and ambush anyone who comes along, including us. They would be thrilled to get their hands on James and I.
We decided that we would still get the trailer, put the mattresses down and get out of town. But, we looked at a map and found a route that headed in the right direction, eventually, but was not the way the bikers took.
James, Jim and Rick left right after the meeting and went to warm up the truck and get the trailer hooked up and back here. The rest of us were getting the last of the stuff downstairs and ready to go when they got back. Jackie and I even took the time to search the downstairs rooms one last time for anything useful. We would not be coming back to the Frank T. Weathers Senior Care Center. We were headed for the Greenbriar Hotel and were determined to get there.
The guys got back about an hour later and we loaded up all the mattresses, food, the few medical supplies left and whatever else people felt they needed to bring. It took us until past midday to get the trailer ready for passengers. We stopped, ate a meal, and then loaded up. Jackie and Brad rode up front in the cab with James since they were both born and raised in this area. Brad said he knew the way we were going and that they turn we needed to take was on a blind corner, so people used to miss it all the time. Better to have them up navigating and I was fine with being in the back with the others.

We had brought some of those battery powered touch lights and had stuck them to the inside of the trailer at regular intervals. We didn't use them all at once to save the batteries for as long as possible, but they did give off enough light for us to not be in pitch black. The mattresses made us more comfortable, but there wasn't much back here, except the couple of pallets of snack foods secured in the front of the trailer. At least we wouldn't starve on our way to the Greenbriar.
We drove for the rest of the day, made the turn thanks to Brad and Jackie, and James found an old gas station to park or rig out of sight in the truck wash bay. We decided to post guards and sleep in the trailer.
We are on our way, again, headed to the Greenbriar. Here's to hoping there are survivors there that are still human enough to take in more survivors. Also, here's to hoping we avoid those bikers and they turn to another destination.

As a writer and artist, I appreciate any readers and their comments. Thank you for taking the time to read this blog. Please, come read the other blog I write for our artisan collective, Raven's Castle Creations, on our website at www.ravencastlecreations.com. It includes posts on art, the mythology of symbols we use in our art, history and more! Also, come see the art we produce in our Etsy store at etsy.com/shop/RavenCastleCreations. Follow us on Twitter at @ravencastleart and on Facebook at @ravencastlecreations.