The Apocalypse Survival Manual (Three Days Before Doomsday, I Stockpiled Billions) novel Chapter 517

Chapter 516

When Jasper asked about the Hummer, Zeph answered honestly, “We upgraded it both before and after the disasters.”

“The work must be solid. You totaled a Maybach, and this thing barely has a scratch. Armor like that couldn’t have been cheap.”

“Not really. I did most of it myself.”

Jasper studied Nicole and Zeph. “Can you tell me exactly what happened today?”

Nicole remained perfectly calm. “It didn’t start today.”

She laid out the entire history of the dispute, beginning with the other residents banding together to shut them out and ending with Marcus deliberately crashing into their Hummer. She talked for over an hour.

By the time she finished, Jasper was exhausted and struggling not to yawn.

“Several witnesses claim one of you had an explosive device and the other had a grenade. Possessing either one is illegal.”

“That never happened.” Nicole didn’t even blink. “They’re trying to frame us. You can search the truck if you don’t believe me.”

Jasper took her up on the offer and ordered his officers to search the Hummer thoroughly.

Then he turned to the timid little girl hiding beside Zeph. “Are you sure no one had an explosive device or a grenade?”

Poppy ducked behind Zeph and peeked around him. “We didn’t, officer. They’re the bad ones. They wouldn’t let us into the neighborhood, and their alpaca spit on us. I got hurt, too. The seat belt hurt me when they crashed into us.

That part was true. The seat belt left dark bruises across Poppy’s thin shoulders.

The officers searched the Hummer inside and out but found nothing.

Jasper’s gaze sharpened. “Would you object to us searching your house as well?”

“Not at all,” Nicole replied without hesitation.

Whenever the entire family left the house, she moved anything suspicious into her storage space.

Jasper was about to return to his car when his radio crackled.

“Chief, we have multiple homicides in the west end of the new district. Six, maybe seven victims.”

Jasper looked almost disappointed. “We’ll leave it here for today. Someone from the department will contact you.”

Once he was back in the police car, he leaned against the rear seat and closed his eyes.

“Find two reliable officers and get them hired onto the neighborhood security team. Have them keep an eye on Villa 50 without drawing attention. I want to know immediately if anything unusual happens.”

Nicole and Zeph watched the police car disappear down the road before driving home.

The moment Cola heard the Hummer, he began scratching at the gate next door. As soon as the gate opened, he

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raced toward Nicole, whining softly.

+15 8ghus

After parking the Hummer in the garage, Zeph inspected it from bumper to bumper. Only after confirming that nothing had been planted or tampered with did he lock the garage.

“You think they planted a listening device?”

“It never hurts to be careful.”

Ordinary people might not have access to surveillance equipment, but the police certainly did.

They went inside and locked the door behind them.

Nicole asked, “Why do you think Jasper called off the search so quickly?”

With the Robinsons pressuring the police, Jasper should have treated the incident as a serious matter and investigated it thoroughly.

Zeph thought for a moment. “I think he recognized us.’

Not just their faces, too. He might have connected them to what had happened at Ironvale Base.

In Zeph’s previous life, he had worked with Jasper. The man was intelligent, courageous, resourceful, and open- minded. More importantly, he knew how to adapt when circumstances changed.

They had left too many clues behind. It was only a matter of time before Jasper identified them. He might never figure out that Nicole had a storage space, but someone as capable as him would have little trouble tracking down the two of them.

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