The Apocalypse Survival Manual (Three Days Before Doomsday, I Stockpiled Billions) novel Chapter 126

Chapter 126

Cola pawed at Nicole, trying to comfort her in his own way.

“I’m okay. And you will be, too.”

She stayed in bed until a little after 11 a.m. before finally dragging herself up and stepping into her storage space to brush her teeth and wash her face.

Outside, she had to bundle up in layers just to stand it. Inside, the warmth made her sweat.

She didn’t stay long. Going back and forth between hot and cold like that was a good way to get sick.

With the space heater running, her room felt like spring. The moment she cracked the door open, though,

the cold sliced in like a blade.

She couldn’t bring the heater or battery pack outside, but she couldn’t keep the rabbits cooped up in her

room forever either.

She checked on them again. One more baby had died.

Nicole cleared out another room. She dragged in a beanbag chair, laid an electric blanket over it, and

moved the rabbits there.

Before leaving, she crouched down and pointed at Cola.

“Watch them. No chewing wires, and no messing up the electric blanket, or I’m cooking them.”

Cola looked like he understood. He pinned Ash down and bared its teeth, as if passing the message

along.

Nicole opened the windows briefly to air things out, then set up a charcoal stove in the living room for

appearances.

Holding a hot water bottle against her chest, she stood on the balcony and looked out.

Yesterday, the city was still drowning in floodwater.

Now, overnight, everything was frozen solid.

The sound of rain was gone. What remained was a silence so heavy that it felt like time itself had stopped.

Even having lived through it once before, Nicole still felt that same deep fear creeping in.

At least the temperature hadn’t dropped any further. That gave people a little breathing room.

But -2 degrees in a coastal city, that alone was already devastating.

Her phone wouldn’t even turn on anymore.

She shut the doors and windows, turned off the heaters that had been running all night, and swapped in

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two fresh ones so they wouldn’t burn out.

With both the heaters and the charcoal stove going, the living room finally held some warmth.

Cold weather called for hot food.

Nicole took out a pot of beef stew with radishes, some greens, and rice. She added freeze-dried meat to

Cola’s kibble.

Sitting by the heater, she ate with real appetite.

Afterward, she didn’t feel like doing dishes. She tossed everything into storage to deal with later.

She cracked the window for a bit to let the smell out, then settled down with a hot water bottle and flipped through a medical book.

Beatrice knocked to check in.

No one even opened the door. Just confirming they were all still alive was enough before she hurried

back to burrow under her blankets.

Jeremy had caught a cold, but luckily, they had medicine.

Nicole was just about to take a nap when the walkie-talkie crackled again.

“Poppy’s not having lessons today. You want Cola to get some exercise?”

Nicole looked down at the dog. “Cola, you wanna go?”

Cola tilted his head, thinking for a moment, then got up. “Woof!”

A day without running didn’t feel right.

Nicole opened the door just enough and nudged the dog out. “Go on.”

Moments later, the sound of paws pounding up and down the stairs echoed through the building.

She hesitated, then followed after all. By the time she got there, Cola’s fur coat had already been taken off. It was in Zeph’s hands.

After a few laps, he pulled off the dog’s wool sweater, too.

Then even the temperature-regulating layer came off.

Nicole frowned. “Isn’t he cold?”

Zeph shook his head. “Malinois adapt fast. Too many layers actually get in the way.”

Malinois have short but dense fur. It’s enough to handle the cold.

Once they get moving, they heat up quickly. But dogs don’t sweat like humans.

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Nicole stood off to the side, clutching her hot water bottle. She noticed Zeph wasn’t bundled up either. He wasn’t even wearing a fur coat.

“Aren’t you cold?”

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