She dragged me by the hand like a disobedient dog on a chain. The forest had small steep hills but she knew this area well. Everything was different shades of black and grey, the forest was so cold and unforgiving that not even the colours dared to stay. I longed for the faintest blue, darkest green or trickle of red from the cuts on my hand. I closed my eyes. Were they still open?

“This is it! We’re here!” She exclaimed. Her quiet voice was an echo booming in the silence of the night. We were the last human beings around for miles. She held both my hands and led me towards her until moonlight shone through the labyrinth of branches. She looked whiter than usual but I didn’t want to think she looked ghostly. There were probably enough of them in the forest.

“So… What now?” I trembled. The sharp wind scraped past my face. It was blisteringly cold.

“Now, we eat.” She smiled with the innocence of a girl less than half her age as she kissed my dry lips and dragged a third human body into the pale glow.