"Then let's trade for rice. I'm all out." After Evelyn Ford went to get the medicine for her, Lauren Keller gave Evelyn about a pound of rice.
In the afternoon, Lauren Keller sent Evelyn Ford a message: her grandmother's fever had broken, and Indy next door was also getting better.
There was more good news: a rescue team in a motorboat had entered the streets and alleyways, using a megaphone to make announcements. In addition to reassuring the residents, they were urging everyone on the lower floors to evacuate to the emergency shelters as soon as possible.
The disabled and the elderly, in particular, would be picked up by rescue personnel in motorboats and kayaks after registering. Of course, there were still some stubborn seniors who refused to evacuate, but the situation was critical. Orders had to be obeyed; no one had the time to indulge their whims.
The floating body downstairs was retrieved by the rescue team. A nearby streetlamp went ZAP, its bulb exploding in a shower of sparks that was instantly doused by the downpour.
This time, Holly Lowe from unit 202 came up with her two children and started pounding on the door. First, she played the victim, then she tried to guilt-trip Evelyn. When that failed, she threw a full-blown tantrum in the hallway. Evelyn Ford ignored her, letting her wail outside.
"Evelyn Ford, please, take pity on Kyle and Mia! They're only ten years old. How can you stand to see them suffer like this? I'll give you money. Five thousand, how about it?"
"Aunt Lowe, Kyle and Mia are your and Mr. Miller's children, not mine. Throwing a fit here won't do you any good. You'd be better off packing your things and heading to the shelter."
"Those places are filled with all kinds of people, and the conditions are awful. Kyle and Mia wouldn't be able to handle it. Evelyn Ford, I'll raise the offer—ten thousand? Just take the two kids. My husband and I won't come in."
"Sorry, no."
"How can you be so heartless?"
Evelyn Ford sneered. 'Sympathy? What's that? Can you eat it?'
"Mom, I'm so cold and hungry." Kyle Miller might have been young, but he had a nasty temper. He started kicking and banging on the door.
Evelyn Ford suddenly yanked the door open. The little fatty stumbled inside from his own momentum, landing on the floor. He immediately burst into tears, a stream of curses spewing from his mouth. Evelyn hoisted him up and threw him a good six feet away.
"Evelyn Ford, what are you doing throwing my son? Are you even human?"
"Mom, she hit me! Get her back for me! Beat her to death so we can live here!"
Hearing this, Evelyn Ford shut the door, walked over to Kyle Miller, and hoisted him up again. Holly Lowe's face went white with fright as she stared at Evelyn, her expression a mixture of terror and disbelief.
"Evelyn Ford, let go of my son! What do you think you're doing? I'm warning you, don't you dare hurt him, or you'll regret it!"
"Get lost now, or I'm throwing him down there," Evelyn Ford said, glancing toward the stairwell.
"You wouldn't dare!" Holly Lowe lunged forward to grab her son, but Evelyn kicked her in the knee.
"Are you leaving?"
"Evelyn Ford, you're out of control!"
"Just dealing with scum. Are you leaving or not?"
"I'm leaving! I'll leave right now! Just give me back my son."
Evelyn Ford tossed Kyle Miller onto the ground. Holly Lowe scooped up her son and fled.
Mia, who had been forgotten, shot a timid glance at Evelyn Ford. Finding Evelyn staring at her expressionlessly, she also turned and ran downstairs.
As for Holly Lowe's husband, who knew where he was hiding all this time.
Two hours later, Holly Lowe's family of four was forcibly evacuated by the rescue team.
The water level had now reached the second floor. All kinds of trash floated in the murky water, along with numerous animal carcasses bloated like balloons. Sewage was backing up through the drains, and residents were simply tossing their garbage and human waste directly into the floodwaters. The moment you opened your door into the hallway, you were hit with a foul, fishy stench.
That evening, Lauren Keller messaged Evelyn Ford, asking if she wanted to go out on a supply run together the next day. Evelyn considered it. 'If I don't go out for a long time, how can I explain how I'm eating and drinking? Letting people find out I'm not short on food would only cause unnecessary trouble.'
'Even if I don't go out tomorrow, I'll have to go out eventually. I might as well take this opportunity to bring a motorboat back out in the open.'
Evelyn had just replied that she would go when Lauren immediately said she'd rented a motorboat from a neighbor on the eighth floor for three hours. The cost was three thousand for the three hours. Evelyn glanced at her bank balance on her phone and transferred fifteen hundred to Lauren, who accepted it without any fuss.
In the group chat, many people were asking to borrow power banks. Someone with a generator had even started a business, charging a hundred for a single device charge. While it was blatant price gouging, plenty of people were still paying up.
Evelyn Ford had no intention of taking out her generator just yet. 'The one I bought is an imported brand, so it's nearly silent. Although the temperature dropped quickly after the storm began, it's still bearable. Your body needs to adapt to the environment slowly. The only way to reduce the chances of getting sick is to boost your immunity.'
After drinking a bowl of piping hot ginger soup, Evelyn Ford climbed into her warm bed in her thermal underwear. She didn't suffer from insomnia that night, sleeping soundly until six the next morning. After getting up and quickly washing her face, Evelyn stuck two Warm Babies to her thermals, pulled a thick, padded jacket on over them, and then put on a raincoat and rain boots, bundling herself up completely before heading out.
Lauren Keller was also ready. The two of them went to the eighth floor to retrieve the motorboat, carrying it downstairs with one at the front and one at the back. When she saw the floodwater that had crept up to the second-floor landing, Lauren gagged. The stench was overwhelming, and the wind blowing in their faces was bone-chillingly cold. Evelyn Ford set the boat down in the water and had Lauren get in first.
They had only gone a few yards in the motorboat when several people appeared on the second-floor landing, shouting Lauren Keller's and Evelyn Ford's names. Lauren asked Evelyn if they should take them along. Evelyn narrowed her eyes, looking back at the six of them.
"No. We only rented the boat for three hours. We have to make sure it's returned undamaged, and we have to be back on time."
Lauren Keller was torn. They were all neighbors from their building; it felt really hard to refuse them.
"With them, it would be eight people, and we can all fit. Let's just give them a ride over. They can make their own way back once they buy their own motorboats."
Evelyn Ford raised an eyebrow. 'Maybe it's because I've lived through this once before, but I don't have much empathy left.'
'To Lauren Keller, this is just a heavy downpour. She doesn't know the apocalypse has already begun. I can't judge her with the benefit of my foresight.'
Evelyn turned the boat around and went back to the landing. The six people climbed aboard, and the motorboat was instantly crowded. They chattered nonstop, complaining about the god-awful weather. Evelyn, sitting at the front, immediately started the engine.
"We should buy a motorboat too. This inflatable kind shouldn't be too expensive, but prices have skyrocketed. You used to be able to get one for a few thousand, but now it'd probably cost you tens of thousands."
"Why buy one? We can just borrow one. They're so expensive, and the water will go down once the storm stops. It's not worth it."
"Who's going to keep lending it to you? Get real, this isn't the time to be thinking about freeloading."
An argument broke out behind them. Lauren Keller squeezed in next to Evelyn Ford and let out a faint sigh.
"Ford, when do you think this downpour will ever stop?"
Evelyn Ford glanced at her. Lauren Keller shrugged and offered a small smile. "I just have this constant feeling of panic. I'm so glad my grandma is okay, though. Evelyn Ford, thank you for that."
"Don't mention it." As they spoke, the motorboat left their apartment complex behind.