The Apocalypse Survival Manual (Three Days Before Doomsday, I Stockpiled Billions) novel Chapter 743

Deep down, Camila still believed Arthur resented Irene for marrying someone else and resented her for being raised by another man.

He never truly accepted either of them. Supporting two more people cost him nothing, so he let them stay close.

Sometimes, Camila even wondered if keeping them around was his own quiet way of getting back at Irene for leaving him all those years ago.

As a senior officer at the military base, Arthur had no shortage of options. If he wanted a woman in his life, he could've had his pick.

Irene, meanwhile, was already middle-aged and only came looking for him again after her husband died.

Camila couldn't exactly blame him for being bitter.

What bothered her even more was how little Irene seemed to care about Camila's future once they reached the base. Almost all her attention went to Arthur.

Arthur wanted Camila to enlist, and Irene sided with him even though she knew Camila wasn't cut out for that kind of life.

Then, when Camila asked him to help her get a decent job, Arthur refused to use his connections. Irene defended him again, saying someone in his position couldn't play favorites.

When it came down to it, Camila couldn't help feeling that Irene cared more about Arthur than she did about her own daughter.

What made it worse was that Irene still seemed completely devoted to him when he clearly wanted nothing romantic with her.

He wouldn't even come home for her birthday. To Camila, that said enough.

Irene had no idea what her daughter was thinking. When she heard Nicole had ruined the date, she rubbed her temples.

"Her again. Is she ever going to stop?"

Sometimes, Irene felt like Nicole was born just to make her life harder. If she had known things would turn out this way, she might've taken the risk and ended the pregnancy instead of having a daughter who fought her at every turn.

Irene sighed. "Mark is Mrs. Patel's son, and she's the major general's wife. He's already a deputy battalion commander at his age, so he clearly has a future ahead of him.

"If your father approves of him and gives him some support later, he could go far. You can't throw away an opportunity like this."

Camila wanted to make it work, too, but the man walked off halfway through their conversation. She couldn't exactly go chasing after him.

Seeing that her daughter finally understood, Irene nodded.

"Good. Just be smart about it when the time comes. I'll help you."

Neither of them brought up Nicole again. Without saying it outright, they both understood that even if the truth came out, they would deny everything to the bitter end.

But as long as Nicole stayed at the base, neither of them could truly relax.

Irene sat in front of the birthday cake, staring at the candles as memories of Arthur filled her mind.

She thought about meeting him 30 years ago and falling for him almost instantly, but whatever innocence and happiness they once shared was long gone.

Years of disasters and fighting to survive had changed them both. They were no longer the people they used to be.

Camila went back to her room and lay awake for hours, tossing and turning. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get Nicole out of her head.