The Apocalypse Survival Manual (Three Days Before Doomsday, I Stockpiled Billions) novel Chapter 13

Chapter 13

The residents on the second floor were busy moving, too.

Life without water, power, or gas was brutal. Even if you had rice, flour, and oil, you couldn’t cook. Some people used liquor as fuel. Others smashed furniture for firewood. A few went half-crazy from hunger, chewing raw rice until they got sick.

When several sturdy bags were tossed in through the window, eyes lit up everywhere.

The moment they spotted the inflatable raft, an older woman hurried over with a wide smile.

“You brought so much stuff just to move?” she asked sweetly. “What do you have in there?”

Her smile was warm, but her eyes were calculating.

When she reached out to touch the bags, Hughie, already out of breath, pulled them tightly against his legs.

Since she couldn’t grab the bags, she went for the raft instead.

“Young man,” she said urgently, “we’ve been trapped for days with nothing to eat. Lend us the raft so we can go find food outside. Adults can starve, but children can’t.”

The raft was a lifeline. Hughie refused without hesitation.

The woman grabbed anyway.

She yanked him hard. Hughie, who was weak to begin with, nearly fell. In a panic, he pulled the air valve. The raft deflated with a long hiss.

“What’s wrong with you?” the woman snapped. “Everyone’s suffering! Is it so hard to lend a hand?”

Beatrice had just been pulled up by Nicole. Seeing her boyfriend bullied, she exploded. She stepped forward and shoved the woman.

“What are you doing?”

Beatrice was strong. The woman stumbled back five or six steps, slammed into the wall, and almost tumbled down the stairs.

The woman’s two sons rushed up immediately.

“If you won’t lend it, fine!” one yelled. “But who gave you the right to hit her?”

They raised their fists, trying to overwhelm Beatrice by force.

Wrong move.

Beatrice didn’t hold back. With just one punch and a kick, both men went flying down the stairs and splashed straight into the water on the first floor.

The woman dropped to the ground, about to wail. Then, she saw both her sons flailing in the water. She forgot all about shouting and scrambled down the stairs to pull them out.

The onlookers started complaining instead.

“They were just asking! Was it really necessary to get physical?”

Jealous eyes everywhere. If the raft got lent out, would it ever come back?

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Papter 13

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Nicole had expected this. That was why she had brought a knife.

Beatrice grabbed it from her and leveled it at the crowd.

“Touch my stuff and see what happens.”

She had short hair and a low, rough voice. At first glance, people thought she was a man. Then they remembered she had dropped two grown men in seconds.

They were furious, but fear won out. There were lots of shouting, but no one stepped forward. Arguing was pointless.

Nicole grabbed the bags and led them upstairs.

Hughie looked drained. Beatrice wasn’t in a great mood, either.

One storm had flipped the whole world upside down. People’s values shattered just as fast. Every face looked sharp and feral now.

When Beatrice saw the stainless steel door on the 18th floor, she froze.

“Nicole,” she said quietly. “You’re something else.”

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