Joshua just looked at her sympathetically thinking he knew what her nightmares were about. From the signs of the trauma being so fresh he presumed what ever happened was linked to the big attack just a year ago, but he left her alone about details and said. "Be careful as we approach the town." Then began down the road. "I'm Joshua by the way, but most people back home just called me Josh."

Jinny nodded, very glad he didn't ask. She picked up her things and started to follow him, a bit closer than she had before. "Hi, Mr. Josh. Everybody calls me Jinny, 'cause Daddy called me Jinny. I guess you can too, if you want." She was being extra polite to him, because he'd seen her cry and didn't fuss over it. That was a nice change. Plus he'd given her tasty strawberry jelly, and that was also nice. She hadn't met a nice grown up that wasn't her dad.

"Jinny, thats a nice name." Joshua said as he walked. The name sounded familiar but he couldn't quitelace it at the moment.

It wasn't but thirty to forty minutes walk before they cam to the entrance to the neighboring town. The site was pretty sad and dismal as it was partially abandoned for some time now. Cars were parked in yards and intersections as well as littered through the streets. Weeds had become overgrown and reached around things as if slowly engulfig them into the ground. The city water tower had fallen and was stopped by a large building that looked like a warehouse of some kind. Joshua knew that wad where hewanted to go first because if people were here at one time that would be where they kept their supplies.

There was almost no signs of life accept for some houses with pathes worn into the lawns which worried Joshua as he started to slowly walk through with his bow ready to shoot. The paths indicated these spots were regularly traversed by one or more people. The paths lead to back yards and around houses. 'This is not good.' He thought passing the welcome sign. 'Those are check up routs for the houses.' He looked back over his shoulder and whispered. "Stay close, and quiet."

Jinny had been looking around, but not aware of the signs of life that Joshua was noticing. In her head, the town was abandoned. But she followed his instructions, nodding and dropping into silence. She took her knife from where she'd left it hanging on her pack. She held it loosely in her hand, but now that Joshua had alerted her, she was prepared for trouble. Though she wasn't sure what kind of trouble. He'd said raiders before, but she really hoped it wasn't raiders, because she might be scared, and the last thing she wanted to do in her first real grown-up fight was to be a scared kid.

Joshua looked in all the houses from the street as they walk down the street and occasionally back behind them. The paths in the yards seemed to be random and irregular signifying that who ever was here wasn't very organized. He didn't see any movement from the windows or alleyways between the houses which gave him some relief, but he never let down his guard.

"We are going to check the warehouse for some provisions and get the hell out of here." Josh told Jinny. "I dont want to hang around here if someone is here. They have the advantage 'cause we have no familiarity with this place, and they live here wich means they know it as good as the back of their hands."

~~~~\\~~~~

A man hidden in the shadows of the city center building, just down the road from the warehouse, looked through his binoculars catching glimpses of two people. His lips pealed back revealing a row of yellowed and missing teeth, and set down the binoculars. The man then disappeared into the shadowy interior of the building.

Jinny nodded. Josh sounded like he knew what he was talking about, and besides that, his words made sense. She knew bunches of ways to do things that other people didn't know, because she had done them a bunch of times. Nodding in response, she steadied her grip on the knife, and kept her eyes open.

Even though she couldn't see anything, she had a weird feeling. Like... like she was being watched. Stared at. "My skin is tingly."

"Mine too, I think we are being watched." Joshua said. He has had this feeling before and it was never wrong. He just had a sense for these oind of things and apparently Jinny did too. "Do let them know that we know they are there. If there is someone here we dont want them to be on edge. If they think they have the upper hand they will be more relaxed, and easier to find or avoid." He informed her. She was young and it was a lot to grasp but he was confidant she could understand the concept of stealth and mind games.

As they reached the warehouse building Josh made his was around the back where the loading docks were. There he found two small trucks parked at the bay doors, but he couldn't tell if they had been used recently. As he made his way to the door on the far side of the trucks he stopped before opening it and turned to Jinny. "This is very important, okay, when we go in here I want you to stay as close as you can to me. There is a possibility that we can find stuff in here, but don't touch anything until I say we can." He paused looking into her eyes making aure she understood then continued. "And, if by chance, you see someone moving around dont say anything. I want you to tug on my pack so I know you saw them but they dont know we know they are there." He knew this was a very dangerous situation, but if there is stuff in here then they need it.

Jinny listened calmly to all that Joshua was saying, only nodding in response. Joshua talked to her like her Daddy used to- like she was old enough to get things. If she didn't understand something, she could ask, but she knew it wasn't going to be dumbed down for her or put in baby language. She hated people who treated her like she was stupid because she was young. Just because she hadn't lived that long didn't mean she didn't have a brain! She trailed after him, quiet as they reached the warehouse. There was bound to be treasure inside- maybe food, maybe weapons, maybe awesome things to build with tools.

"I won't touch anything." Her voice was low and steady. "And I'll pay attention."

Josh nodded in response and was glad that Jinny understood the situation as he did. He turned to the door and put his bow and arrow away and pulled out his pistol, and slowly opened the door peering in through the crack. Once the door was about an inch open some where with in the building a power saw turned on creating a loud buzzing and wurring noise. Josh recoiled from he door at once and cursed under his breath. He cast a glance back to Jinny then to the door again. 'This has to be the worst case ever.' He thought as he tightened his grip on his gun. 'Now if there is someone there we can't here them.' He hesitated before opening the door and starting into the building trying to find the saw.

~~~~\\~~~~

The man from before sat high on one of the storage shelves waiting for- *wurkug bzzzzz* That, the saw to start which ment they were in the warehouse. He slowly, and like a spider, made his way across the selves in the dark building looking for the intruders.

Jinny rolled her eyes, wanting to cover her ears to block out the whine of the saw. The longer she listed to it, the more she hated the noise. But then, she also felt like there was something she should know about it. Something important. It took another full minute before she realized what her instincts were trying to tell her. Hurriedly she tugged on Joshua's pack and gestured rapidly for him to bend down. Once he was within range, she whispered. "The noise is wrong! They... they aren't cutting anything, the saw's just on! Who does that?"

Joshua was almost to the saw when he felt the tug on his pack making him tighten his grip on his gun and begin scanning the rows of shelving for movement. Then he felt it again and turned to Jinny who was motioning for him to kneel and listen. He listened to, or tried to, as she said that the saw being on wasn't right. Looking around and seeing no one he nodded and put up a finger as he also saw a power cord plugged into the wall close enough to reach quickly. He took a couple steps and unplugged it which resulted in the saw turning off. "I assume it is an alarm system set up at one point, but whoever set it up is long-"
Josh stopped when he saw a man standing on the top of one of the tall shelves dropping a rock bound for Jinnies head. "Look out!" He said rushing for her but at his speed it would be too late. 'Move kid, move!' Was the only thing going through his mind.

A new foe has appeared

Once they got the saw off, Jinny relaxed. But unfortunately that was the opposite of what she should have done. When Joshua told her to look out, she looked around, confused, unsure of where the danger was. She didn't know where to move, and so she didn't move at all. The rock hit her right in the back of the head, and she crumpled as her vision went to stars and spots. "Owwwwww-" She clutched her head reflexively, dropping the knife.

Joshua reached Jinny and looked up at the man who was now jumping down at him. He tried to draw up his gun but he wasn't quick enough the man had already reached the ground and proceeded to smack the gun put of Josh's hands and pulled out a bat.
"Come now." The man teased in a raspy voice. "Guns are loud and dangerous."
Josh had picked up the knife Jinny dropped and got into a fighting stance, but his opponent had taken a defensive method knowing he had the advantage. "Just give me the girl and I will let you live." The man said trying to barter one life for another. "She's just dead weight for you anyway."
Josh looked back at Jinny then to the man which was a mistake. In that time the man had taken a full body swing and smacked Josh in side of the head causing him to fall to the ground. The man stood for a second making sure Josh wouldn't get back up then looked to Jinny. "He's gonna feel that when he wakes." After making his remark he reached out to grab Jinny and take her away.

Jinny had recovered barely in time to see Josh clobbered on the side of the head. She gasped as he crumpled to the ground, and tried to get up. Her head hurt like nothing she'd ever felt before, and she couldn't get her feet under her good enough to start running. "You leave me alone, you big smelly... smelly ass!" Jinny had never cursed before, but she'd heard plenty of the bad words in town. She figured they'd make her sound tough. If only she'd held onto her knife. Her fists balled, and she started to take wild swings at the gray haired man.

When the man reached out to grab Jinny she began yell at him and swing a few punches landing one on he man's side. He gasped and took a step back. "That wasn't nice." He went at her again subduing her wild puches and kicks by duct taping her wrists together, then her feet and mouth. He stood up and put the duct tape on a self then looked down at Jinny. "Go ahead and screem, there is no one here to hear y-" the man stopped speaking and his eyes got wide.
"I am." Came the Josh's dazed and angry voice. He had stabbed the man with Jinny's knife in the lower back. "You should've check to make sure I was dead." The man tried to turn and look at Josh while grabbing for his bat again, but Josh hrabbed his head and slammed it into one of the shelves. As the man fell into a slump Josh used his knife to cit the tape off of Jinny then sat down. The side of his head was brused up, his hair was wet with blood and his eye was pretty swollen as he sat and rested. "Are you okay, he didn't-" he stopped as he winced in pain.

Jinny was shaking and swearing when the tape went on her. She struggled the whole way but wasn't a match for a grown man. She shut her eyes in an attempt not to panic. The man was right, there wasn't anyone to help her.

And there suddenly there was! Mr. Josh wasn't dead, and he'd stabbed the smelly guy. They fought a little, but Josh won, and soon she was free. She could have hugged him, but she was too worried for that. "Me? I'm ok, he didn't do nothing. You're bleeding." Although she said it in a matter of fact way, she was quite worried, and tried to rub the blood away with a spare shirt from her pack. "We gotta go, Mr. Josh... there's gonna be more people coming." That guy couldn't have been the only one. "Come on..." She wondered what she was going to use as a weapon now, seeing as her only knife was stuck in a (hopefully) dead guy.

Josh sat where he was a moment thinking over what to do and where to go. He took off his pack and and set it in front of him. "First things first." He said getting into the pack. "My gun, over there." He nodded without looking up from his bag. "Grab it and stand next to me." He pulled out a med kit, and began to bandage his head. "You may be right there could be more, and we need to get out of here." This was going to be difficult for Josh because the world was spinning and he felt very dizzy. "Do you know how to shoot that?" He asked once she had his Colt 1911 in hand.

Jinny went for the gun and held it very, very carefully. She went back to Mr. Josh. He didn't look so good, his eyes were sort of unfocused. "I know how to shoot, but I've only done it like... once. The trigger's here and you squeeze it, and you hold the gun so that you don't hurt your wrist. My daddy taught me, 'cept his gun wasn't like this one." Her daddy had promised to teach her more about shooting, but that just hadn't happened. "I know how to aim an' stuff. I won't let anybody hurt you." She smiled very slightly, and then started looking around and making sure no one was coming. "...what did that guy want me for?" She really didn't understand. "Why not keep you? You can do more."

"It's best we not think about that." Josh said standing up, wobbling slightly, and puttin his pack back on. If she didn't know why a grown man wanted to keep a young girl it is best that she stays ignorant of it. He grabbed his knife from his belt and looked to Jinny. "Here is the plan: we are going to leave the way we came, and head east." He paused looking at his watch. It was about eleven, which would make the sun to high to get direction from. He then thought about which way they camw into town from. "From the door that will be left. We are going to need to stay off the roads as to not be seen until we reach the edge of town." He finished while walking over to the man and removing the knife. The man didn't move as the knife slide out to reveal it had broken from the force of his fall. Josh looked back to Jinny. "We will make it out of here... I promise."

"Okay. I believe you." She looked concerned as he wobbled, but as he didn't fall over, she went back to watching out. After making sure he was okay to follow, she started back for the door, her steps quick and quiet, her grip on the gun careful. "...do you really want me to shoot people?" She whispered very quietly as they went. It wasn't as if she wouldn't defend herself if the time came, but she wanted to make sure she wasn't being asked to just scare people by holding a gun on them.