The Cellar: A Post-Apocalyptic Novella by Richard Dela Cruz Read Free Book Online

found.
    “I found a can of beans near my village,” he said. “I spotted it near the place where you passed over in your creepy costume last night. It looked brand new—like it was made just days ago.”
    Lara widened her eyes in shock.
    “I dropped a can?” she asked. “Who else saw it?”
    “The raiders took it from me,” he replied. “They demanded to know where the rest of it was so I led them on a wild chase through the forest.”
    “So that’s why they were after you.”
    “That’s right. I just want to know if there’s more of it and why it looks so damn new.”
    Lara scratched the back of her head and exhaled. She looked up at the ceiling for a few moments as if considering her next move. She then turned her face to look at him.
    “I don’t know about this, Daren.”
    “I want to help my village just like you.” He reached out and touched her hand. The intimate gesture surprised her, but she kept her hand in place. “I can’t stand to see them put up with rat heads and rat tails for one more day. Just once, I’d like to see them eat a real, honest meal that’s actually meant for a human.”
    He watched her face soften as he spoke the words. Her posture began to relax.
    “I promise you that I will never reveal to a single soul the location of the stash or any of your secrets,” he said, raising his other hand in the air as he locked his eyes with hers, “on pain of torture and dismemberment, so help me, O Unseen One.”
    “Well,” said Lara with a slight smile, “I guess you can’t get any more reassurance than that.”
    As soon as he felt well enough to stand, Lara led him outside the room. She shone her lamp on a small hallway. Like the room he woke up in, the walls and ceiling were made of metal plates with rivets going down the seams. A sudden thought occurred to Daren.
    “Are we underground?”
    “Yes,” she replied. “This place was built a long time ago. But it doesn’t seem like anyone ever used it.”
    Daren followed her to the end of the hallway where a large steel door waited. He froze when he looked closely at the door. It matched the one in his dream exactly.
    Lara left her lamp on the floor and placed her hands on the door’s hand wheel. The wheel didn’t move at first. She leaned slightly to her right to apply more force to her turn. The hand wheel budged a little then stopped. She grunted as she pulled a little harder. The wheel squeaked as she managed to turn it the rest of the way. She rested her hand on the doorknob and looked at Daren.
    “Whatever you do,” she told him, “try not to freak out.”
    She turned the doorknob, pulled open the door, and stepped inside the room, which was pitch black. Daren picked up the lamp she left on the floor and raised it to chest level.
    “Hey,” he called out to her, “you forgot your lamp.”
    “Don’t need it.”
    Daren nearly dropped the lamp when he saw the room instantly illuminated. He placed it back on the floor and stepped inside. Overhead were several rectangular lamps stuck to the ceiling. He gasped when he saw what lay underneath the bright lights. On each side of the long narrow chamber were shelves stocked to overflowing. There were all sorts of cans, sacks, packets, jars of food, and plastic containers filled with water. Lara stood in the middle of the room, clearly enjoying his reaction.
    “You should see the look on your face.” She covered her mouth to stifle a laugh.
    Daren gazed around stupefied. He kept rubbing his eyes and blinking them. There was more food there than he had ever thought existed. He picked up random cans to look at them. He saw a sack of rice and inhaled its fragrance. His mouth watered when he saw pictures of fruits, meats, and vegetables on the various containers. And the most astonishing thing of all was that every single item looked fresh. Somehow the ravages of time had spared the room.  
    “How?” He stared at Lara. “How is this possible?”
    “No clue. This is how I