The Other Life by Susanne Winnacker Read Free Book Online Page A

like sunshine and ice cream. Not any more.
    1,148 days since Grandma had given up her beehive. It had felt like more than a goodbye to her bees.
    He shrugged. “People here call it Safe-haven. A few other survivors live in the winery with me.”
    The wooden door of the main building was dark, maybe oak, and it was cross-braced with iron, which gave it a medieval touch. Joshua opened it with an old-fashioned silver key that he’d
taken from his jeans pocket. Loss of blood and lack of food were taking their toll on me. All I wanted to do was to lie down, close my eyes and sleep.
    It was slightly cooler in the house than outside, but the heat was still bothering me. The hall was dimly lit and a wooden staircase led up to the first floor. A flowery carpet covered the
ground and a silver chandelier hung from the ceiling. The owner must have been rich.
    “Come on,” Joshua said. He wrapped his arm more tightly around my waist and walked me towards the door on our right. It led into a huge living room with the same flowery carpet. I
hoped I wouldn’t bleed on it.
    That’s your main concern? a snarky little voice in my brain asked. I shook my head to get rid of it, but that only worsened my headache. Sweat trickled into my eyes, making them
sting. I blinked a few times to clear my vision.
    A middle-aged woman sat in an armchair, her head leaning against the backrest and her eyes closed. A book lay open on her lap, and several piles of books and papers littered the floor beside her
feet. Her short brown hair was streaked with grey. Crinkles lined the skin around her eyes and mouth. A few more armchairs and a sofa were positioned in front of a huge fireplace. The room was
clean, free of dust or soot. It was obvious people lived here.
    “Karen, there’s someone here who needs your help,” Joshua said, all but dragging me into the room.
    Karen’s eyes shot open. They were light grey and seemed to pierce right through me. Her gaze swept over my body for a second before she got up so fast it startled me.
    “Joshua!” she exclaimed. She held a hand to her cheek, her lips parted in surprise. “What happened?” She hustled over to us in a few steps. Her smile was reassuring and I
tried to smile in return, but I wasn’t sure if it worked.
    Together they helped me towards the sofa and made me sit down. I slumped against the soft leather of the backrest. Finally, the pain in my foot lessened.
    “When I found her, two Weepers had picked her for dinner. They’d have killed her if she hadn’t fired off her gun in every direction,” Joshua told Karen with a hint of
dark amusement.
    I glanced at him. His eyes sparkled and his words had sounded like praise. But what did I know? My social skills had suffered during three years in the bunker.
    Karen prodded a tender spot on my head, making me wince and stopping my train of thought.
    She clucked her tongue in disapproval. “Lots of blood. Nasty gash. That needs stitches.”
    I groaned and Joshua chuckled, earning himself a glare from me. Judging by the widening of his smile, that seemed to amuse him even more. He really had nice teeth, straight and white. I ran my
tongue over my own teeth.
    “Karen knows what she’s doing, don’t worry.” He winked.
    Karen walked out of the room and returned with a small bag. She pulled out a needle, bandages and some thread, and placed the items on the small side table next to the sofa. It made me think of
a surgeon’s theatre. Equipment in hand, she moved around the sofa and stopped behind me. “Lean forward.”
    I did so without hesitation. That way, at least I wouldn’t see the needle. The movement made my temples throb and black dots danced in my vision.
    “Razor.” She held a hand out and Joshua put a small razor on her palm.
    I tilted my head, frowning at him. “Razor?”
    “She needs to remove the hair around the wound, so she can stitch you up.”
    “As long as I don’t end up with a bald head.” I’d never been too