From the record kept by the twins Jenny and Barbie Crow, May 25

May 25, 2017     

     We made it through the other four apartments on this floor over the last couple of days. They were all really big and full of really expensive stuff that no longer had any purpose. Flat screen TV's, DVD systems, Blue Ray players, sound systems, video gaming systems, computers, all useless. They were all status symbols and everyone had to have them, but now, they were nothing but hunks of metal, plastic and other electronic parts. How ironic!

     One of the apartments had a huge aquarium that took up almost the entire wall between the living room and the dining room. I'm sure there were exotic, beautiful fish in it, before the shit hit the fan. But now, it's full of rotten, stinking, cloudy water with bits of decomposing chunks of fish remains. We didn't stay in that place very long. We looked through the place thoroughly, but didn't linger like we had in the other apartments. There wasn't much to take anyway. It was mostly full of electronics, leather and glass furniture. The cabinets were almost empty and the fridge was open, so we could see it was full of take out boxes. We did find some clothes that were cool and some movies we didn't have to add to our collection. If we got anymore, we will have to find a bigger apartment!

     The last apartment we checked, and ended up staying last night in, was the best one on the floor. It was all dark wood, creamy walls and leather bound books. The floor was hardwood and still shone like it was new. The kitchen was full of the latest gadgets and the cabinets were full of very high end, gourmet foods. We cleaned out the food, happily found five bottles of really good wine, and continued through the rooms.

     The place was empty but in the bedroom, we found a letter, in an envelope, sitting in the middle of the four poster bed. We searched the whole room, closet, master bathroom, under the bed, and then I took the envelope and we went back to the living room. When we opened it, we read the note and knew we wouldn't find anyone hiding in the apartment.

     This is what the note said:

“David,

I hope you get this note because you made it home safe. I want you to know that I had to go check on my mother. I know when we talked on the phone, I agreed to stay here until you got here, but the news has shown a lot of footage around the city and I just have to go. I love you and just in case I don't see you again, I want to tell you that our life together has been wonderful and fulfilling. I know it wasn't always easy and there were times we struggled for everything, from money to time to spend together. We went through rought times, and we went through great times. I regret nothing that has happened and know that we were meant to be together, soul mates. I love you, David.

With love always,

Kathy”

     Last night, when we settled down to sleep, I couldn't sleep right away. I spent some time thinking about the couple who lived here. We didn't find anyone, so I guess David didn't make it home, or at least, to the apartment. For all I know, he could've been one of the people in the security office. He could've gone to ask them a question and gotten killed there. He could even be one of the undead swaying in the street outside, waiting for something to get their attention before expending energy.

     We headed back to our apartment this afternoon and we're planning to stay here for a couple of days. Tomorrow, we're going to put our new supplies away and then we're going to rest before going back to the other tower and going up a floor to start checking the apartments. So far, we've found some really cool stuff, expensive clothes, new movies and some food neither of us have ever eaten before. Hopefully, we'll continue to find more and who knows, maybe someone will be alive over there and hopefully they'll still be sane.

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.