Chapter 32: Chapter 32: Why Aren’t You Dead?

Vivian Young jolted and whipped her head around, her heart nearly leaping out of her throat.

Sue Lawrence’s car had screeched to a halt right behind them, its headlights blindingly bright. She had burst out of the car and lunged forward in an instant.

Just as Pamela Sutton reached for the bag of beef, Sue Lawrence stomped her foot on it. Pamela shrieked and snatched her hand back, spittle flying. "You wasteful brat! Get your filthy foot off it! This is beef! Can you even afford to pay for it?"

"That’s our family’s beef! It’s my stuff, and I’ll do whatever I want with it!"

Sue Lawrence bent down and grabbed the bag of beef. Seeing Pamela Sutton still staring, her eyes filled with greed, Sue, without a second thought, turned and shoved it into the arms of a passing middle-aged woman. "Ma’am, this meat is for you. The outside of the bag is a little dusty, but the inside is perfectly clean. It’s safe to eat!"

The woman, both surprised and delighted, thanked her profusely before clutching the bag of meat and hurrying away.

Pamela Sutton’s eyes went red with fury. "Sue Lawrence! Are you insane? Do you even know who that was? I’m your aunt! Your actual aunt! If you were going to give it away, you should have given it to me! You ill-mannered little beast! You’ll die a miserable death for wasting food like that!"

"’Actual aunt?’" Sue Lawrence sneered. She first steadied Vivian Young, who was still in a daze, then turned and snatched the Chinese cabbage from Pamela Sutton’s arms, shoving it into her mother’s. "We bought this with our own money! We’d feed it to a dog before we gave it to an ungrateful wolf like you!"

Vivian Young quickly clutched the cabbage, shoved it into her shopping cart, and hurried toward her own car. Her fingers trembled as she unlocked it and loaded the groceries, terrified Pamela Sutton would lunge at her again.

Seeing this, a furious and frantic Pamela Sutton tried to give chase, but Sue Lawrence stood firmly in her way.

"You dare block me?" Pamela Sutton clawed and scratched. "Sue Lawrence, you’re siding with outsiders against your own family! You’ll get what’s coming to you! Your mom said you were tricked by some lowlife and knocked up with a bastard child, but I say you brought it on yourself! You’re a promiscuous, worthless tramp who’s dug her own grave!"

SLAP!

The sharp sound of the slap cut off Pamela Sutton’s tirade, which was instantly replaced by a piercing shriek. "Sue Lawrence! Are you insane?!"

Sue Lawrence kicked Pamela Sutton’s shopping cart. CRASH! The rice, flour, oil, and canned goods inside spilled out, rolling all over the ground.

The head of Chinese cabbage Pamela Sutton had snatched rolled under a car. By the time she scrambled to the ground to grab it, it was long gone, snatched up by a quick-thinking passerby.

"My cabbage! My rice and flour!"

Pamela Sutton stomped her feet in anguish, then plopped down on the ground. She started wailing like a shrew, slapping her thighs and crying, "Everyone, look! My own niece is bullying her aunt! She gives our things to strangers, and now she’s destroyed my supplies! She’s getting what she deserves for getting pregnant with a bastard, so what gives her the right to take her anger out on my things!"

’When she thought about her past life, how Donovan Lawrence had brought people to storm their home and steal everything, leading to the deaths of her father and sister-in-law, and how her mother and older brother hadn’t survived the apocalypse amidst the hunger and cold, she felt that kicking over a few of their supplies was letting them off easy!’

"You animal! You’re an uncivilized beast!" Pamela Sutton was still screaming. "Getting defiled and knocked up with some bastard’s child is exactly what you deserve! Your whole family should be smote by the heavens..."

Sue Lawrence activated her Skill.

[Activating Skill 2: What You Rob Is Mine, Acquired [Fortune +10%]!]

After acquiring the Fortune, Sue Lawrence turned and dove into her car. The moment she revved the engine, the roar was deafening. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Pamela Sutton was still standing in front of the car, screaming curses. Sue Lawrence didn’t hesitate; she slammed her foot on the accelerator.

The car shot forward like an arrow from a bow. Pamela Sutton’s face went pale, her pupils shrinking in terror. She never imagined Sue Lawrence would actually dare to run her over.

’I’m going to die!’

Survival instinct kicked in, and she scrambled out of the way, diving to the side. The car whipped past, grazing the hem of her clothes, the gust of wind nearly knocking her off her feet.

Vivian Young followed close behind in her own car. One after the other, they soon disappeared into the flow of traffic.

"Sue Lawrence! I’ll fuck your ancestors!" Pamela Sutton screamed, having collapsed onto the ground. She pointed in the direction the cars had vanished, shrieking obscenities, but her only reply was the cold exhaust fumes.

By the time she came to her senses and scrambled up to gather her scattered supplies, she found the ground was bare. The rice, flour, and oil had all been snatched up by passersby. Even her little shopping cart was gone!

"My cart?! Where are my canned goods?!" she shrieked, on the verge of a breakdown. Her hands fumbled for her backpack. When she yanked it open, she saw that a good half of its contents were gone—the most valuable cans of meat had vanished into thin air!

"Which one of you goddamned thieves dared to steal my things! Show yourself!" Pamela Sutton shrieked, looking around wildly. Her foot slipped, and she went down hard, landing flat on her back with a SMACK. The back of her head slammed against the ground, and the pain made her vision go black.

People hurried past, each person clutching their newly acquired goods. No one gave her a second glance, let alone offered a helping hand.

Pamela Sutton lay in the snow, her hair disheveled and her clothes muddy. All she could do was clutch what was left of her supplies and wail, "Sue Lawrence, you just wait! When the apocalypse comes, I’ll have my son make you pay!"

Whether her son would make Sue pay or not was anyone’s guess, but Sue had just plundered another 10% of her Fortune.

’If they try again, I’ll just keep plundering!’

Once they reached a less crowded section of road, Vivian Young pulled over. The moment Sue Lawrence got out, her mother embraced her tightly.

Vivian Young’s hands trembled as she stroked her daughter’s face and arms. "Sue, are you hurt? That crazy woman didn’t get to you, did she?"

"Mom, I’m fine," Sue Lawrence said, patting her mother’s back reassuringly.

Vivian Young’s eyes were red as tears streamed down her cheeks. "Your aunt... she always acted so pitiful whenever she came to our house. I always thought we should do more to help them... I never imagined she could be so heartless and cruel!"

"They acted docile and obedient because they needed things from us," Sue Lawrence said, her gaze darkening. "Now that the apocalypse is on its way, it’s every man for himself. They can’t hide their greed and selfishness anymore."

Vivian Young sighed and nodded, her eyes filled with disappointment. "I suppose it’s for the best. Better to see their true colors now so we don’t have to deal with them anymore." She suddenly remembered something and lowered her voice. "Sue, about your... situation... only your older brother was supposed to know. Pamela must have heard about it from your uncle. That whole family... I bet they’ve thought this way about us for a long time, that it’s only right we provide for them, that our money and our things should all belong to them."

"Mom, from now on, avoid them if you see them. If you can’t, call me." Sue Lawrence’s tone was firm. Having lived through the hell of the apocalypse, her kindness had long since been ground to dust, leaving only a fierce determination to protect her family.

"Right, right. We’ll stay far away." Vivian Young just wanted to leave. "Sue, let’s go home."

When they got home, they found Vincent Lawrence was there. He had already finished installing several cameras, and the feeds from inside and outside the house were visible on his laptop.

Looking at the supplies everyone had brought back, it wasn’t much. On average, each person had managed to get one bag of rice or flour. They had only snatched a few scattered vegetables, and none of them were very fresh.

Just as they were sorting through their haul, a knock sounded at the door, followed by Donovan Lawrence’s angry voice.

"Open the door! You hit my mom, and you’re not getting away with it!"