The Apocalypse Survival Manual (Three Days Before Doomsday, I Stockpiled Billions) novel Chapter 617

Chapter 617

Nicole thanked Howard and gave him a bottle of whiskey as well, a small gift to thank him for taking her on as a student.

The research institute also had an OB-GYN who knew a great deal about miscarriages, prenatal care, and preventing pregnancy complications.

With Mitchell’s introduction, Nicole spent half the day talking with the doctor and recorded the entire conversation so she could review it later. She learned more than she expected.

By the time she left, she had gathered enough material to study for years.

Nicole was in a good mood on the drive back to Westbridge.

Just after entering the neighborhood, she passed Villa 28 and heard anguished crying coming from inside. People died or lost loved ones every day in the apocalypse, so she didn’t think much of it and continued on to Villa 50.

She was about to close the gate when she happened to run into one of the neighborhood patrols. “Ms. Floyd, you’re back?”

Nicole paused. “Yeah.”

“If you’d gotten back a few hours earlier, Larry might’ve had a chance.”

Larry Barnes? The wealthy businessman who lived in Villa 28?

People were naturally curious, and since the patrolman brought it up himself, Nicole asked, “What happened to him?”

“Larry had a huge stash hidden outside the neighborhood. Once polar night hit, he was too scared to go get it, so his family spent the last two years barely getting by here. As soon as things got safer, he rushed out to bring it all back. But when he got there, the whole place had been cleaned out.”

That stockpile had been the one thing keeping Larry going. He had supposedly hidden enough food and supplies to keep his whole family comfortable for years. Now, it was all gone.

Larry had already been barely holding it together. Finding the stash empty was the last straw.

There wasn’t even any poison around, so he grabbed a knife and cut his wrists instead. By the time anyone found him, he had lost too much blood.

With no real medical care and barely any supplies, there was nothing anyone could do.

Apparently, someone heard that Nicole over at Villa 50 knew medicine, so Larry’s wife, Elana Barnes, had come running over, begging her to save him.

The patrolman said it like it was no big deal, but Nicole frowned. “Who told them I was some kind of amazing doctor?”

And Elana had come all the way over here begging for help? The guards at the neighborhood entrance knew perfectly well that Nicole and Zeph had gone out.

The patrolman seemed to realize he had let something slip and gave an awkward laugh. “Beats me. We just happened to see Mrs. Barnes heading this way while we were making our rounds.”

With that, he hurried off to catch up with the rest of the patrol.

Poppy came out with Cola to let them in, looking annoyed.

Nicole smiled. “What’s wrong?”

Poppy scowled. “People have been talking crap about you.”

That was nothing new. There was a time when practically the whole neighborhood treated Nicole like the enemy.

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Earlier, Poppy was out on patrol when someone came over, saying the man in Villa 28 cut his wrists and asking Nicole to come

save him.

She told them the truth. Nicole and Zeph had gone out and probably wouldn’t be back until later.

Not long after that, a woman showed up outside Villa 50 and started making a scene.

Before long, word spread through the neighborhood that Nicole refused to help a dying man.

“That’s what you’re upset about?” Nicole nearly laughed when she saw Poppy’s cheeks puffed up in anger. “People can say whatever they want. We can’t stop them. As long as we know the truth, that’s enough.”

As they headed upstairs, Nicole decided to turn it into a lesson.

“Poppy, do you know why Mrs. Barnes begged outside our house?”

Poppy thought about it. “To make you come out and save him? But I already told her you weren’t home.”

“Exactly. That’s emotional blackmail.” Nicole explained, “Someone probably got in her ear and convinced her I was actually home, just hiding because I didn’t want to help.”

Nicole had a pretty good idea who was behind it. It had to be the same few people as always. They didn’t have the guts to come after anyone from Villa 50 directly, so they stirred up trouble from behind the scenes instead.

“So what do we do?” Poppy asked.

The more she dealt with other people, the more she realized how complicated they could be. What bothered her most was hearing anyone bad-mouth Nicole.

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