The Apocalypse Survival Manual (Three Days Before Doomsday, I Stockpiled Billions) novel Chapter 488

Chapter 488

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Cola’s little stunt nearly made Nicole laugh out loud. The dog was becoming more and more like Poppy.

The first-floor living room was simply furnished with the old furniture they had brought from Crownview Residences. There was nothing particularly remarkable about it.

Noticing how tense and awkward Brandon looked, Nicole said, “Poppy, weren’t you saying you wanted to plant something in the backyard? Why don’t you take Brandon with you?”

The sweet little girl beamed, her bright eyes full of warmth. She reached for Brandon’s hand. “Come on. I’ll show you how to turn the soil and grow vegetables.”

It was Brandon’s first time meeting someone as cheerful and friendly as Poppy. He relaxed almost at once. “Okay.

He set down his backpack and followed her into the backyard.

Not wanting anyone to pick on Poppy, Cola trotted after them. Before long, the backyard echoed with the laughter of two children.

When Nicole stepped outside, she found Poppy patiently teaching Brandon how to use a hoe.

“No, that’s not how you do it…”

Kids had a way of becoming friends almost instantly. Rather than interrupt them, Nicole slipped into her storage space to see if she could grow radishes.

She loosened the soil in one corner of the black-soil garden and planted two rows of radishes. She hadn’t stocked many radishes before the disasters, and she had long since eaten the last of them.

Hopefully, they would take. Otherwise, radishes might disappear from the world for good. 1

When Nicole came back out, Zeph already had the car keys in hand.

“I’m heading to Oakhaven Gardens to see if Tom can build us a gate.”

The four of them had originally planned to go together, but with Brandon visiting, someone needed to stay home.

Nicole reminded him, “Things are probably getting pretty chaotic over there. Be careful.”

Over the past few days, more and more renovated villas had been occupied. Moving trucks came and went around the clock as wealthy families settled into the neighborhood.

The day before, Nicole had been exercising on the rooftop when a group of well-dressed women happened to walk by. The moment they spotted the towering walls and freshly plastered houses, the smiles disappeared from their faces, replaced by open disdain.

“Look what these disasters have come to. They’ll let just anyone move in here now. This neighborhood’s never going to be peaceful again.”

“Exactly. The government kept talking about security, and now they’re selling homes to practically anyone.”

“You know who I ran into earlier? That scalper, Sven. Can you believe he’s living here, too?”

“Well, people like you were the ones lining his pockets. Otherwise, how could he ever afford a place like this? He got rich off people like us.”

Nicole picked up her binoculars and made sure she remembered every one of their faces.

1/2

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Seriously? Three years into the apocalypse, and they still thought they were better than everyone else.

Without their families propping them up, they probably wouldn’t have survived a single day outside. Yet here they were, strolling through the villa district with bodyguards in tow as if they owned the place.

Around noon, Sven came to pick Brandon up for lunch. The moment he saw the boy covered in dirt from head to toe, he froze for a second before breaking into laughter.

“Well, would you look at that? Didn’t know you had it in you!”

Brandon had always been painfully shy. Even when Sven invited the children of his men over to play, he rarely said a word, let alone rolled around in the dirt with them. Most days, getting him to speak was like pulling teeth. Seeing him like this today was nothing short of a miracle.

Brandon looked reluctant to leave. “I haven’t finished turning my garden yet. I still have to plant sweet potatoes and potatoes.”

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