The Apocalypse Survival Manual (Three Days Before Doomsday, I Stockpiled Billions) novel Chapter 920

Chapter 920

+20 BONUS

Chapter 920

The water froze almost as soon as it hit the surface.

Nicole, Zeph, and Poppy added one thin layer after another until the ice was eight inches thick. Then they climbed down and did the same along the container’s other two exposed sides.

The entrance had to stay clear, but they would need to modify the doors to keep out the cold.

By then, it was getting late. Everything else could wait until morning.

The steel floor was still far too cold to sleep on.

Back at the southern military base, Nicole used her points to stockpile dozens of tons of coal. Now, it was finally going to come in handy.

Coal burned hot and lasted a long time. The ceiling vents provided fresh air, but the stoves also needed flues to carry the fumes outside.

Once the flues were in place, they lit two coal stoves. Soon, the chill inside began to ease.

Nicole furnished the container with solid wood tables, chairs, stools, and a sofa from her storage space. She also brought out two beds with extra-thick mattresses and added electric blankets.

To keep Cola off the cold floor, she put his bed on the sofa and warmed it with an electric blanket connected to a portable power station.

Cola climbed in and settled down, his ears relaxed and his tail thumping enthusiastically.

Between their temperature-regulating clothes and soft blankets, everyone stayed comfortably warm.

The four of them slept better than they had since arriving in the frozen north. With the cold making it hard to leave their beds, they slept until almost 10 a.m.

Outside, everything was frozen solid. Inside, they ate generous bowls of steaming chicken noodle soup until they felt warm enough to break a sweat.

After breakfast, Poppy took Cola up the hill to keep watch while Nicole and Zeph measured the container’s interior. Nicole then brought out boards for the floor.

Cutting and fitting the flooring took the rest of the morning.

That afternoon, they used insulated panels to partition off the bedrooms from the living area. The new walls would help hold in heat and give them some privacy.

Finishing the place meant dealing with one small job after another. It took another five days before the container finally felt like a home.

The coal stoves burned day and night, keeping the inside warm.

The bitter cold outside and constant heat inside left the air painfully dry. Nicole set up a humidifier with a

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Chapter 920

+20 BONUS

little of their favorite fragrance, and a steady plume of mist filled the room with a faint, soothing scent.

With no one around to ask questions, she added a small bookshelf, a table lamp, and a vase to the living room. Fresh gardenias from her storage space filled the vase, lending their own light fragrance to the

room.

She arranged throw pillows and stuffed animals on the sofa, too. Poppy and Cola immediately claimed them, tussling over the toys until her laughter carried outside into the wind and snow.

Their home was small, but they made it cozy.

Nicole took a few pictures, then went into her storage space to find a printer she had put away years ago. She printed her favorite photos from over the years and clipped them to a string in one corner of the living room, making the place feel more like theirs.

After a few days, Cola seemed to get used to the cold. He was always pestering Poppy to come outside and run with him.

His four legs gave him a clear advantage. Poppy waded after him through snow halfway up her calves, calling, “Cola, wait!”

Whenever she got close, he dove into a drift and disappeared.