Magic Space: Struggling to Survive in the Apocalypse-Chapter 44: High Temperature, Snake Infestation 8

Chapter 44: Chapter 44: High Temperature, Snake Infestation 8

The next day, Evelyn Ford continued clearing the snake corpses from the ninth floor. The door to 902 was wide open. From the doorway to the interior, it was nothing but snake corpses. Evelyn already had an inkling of what she would find. She sped up, clearing the ninth floor, and walked into 902. When she saw the skeleton in the bedroom, Evelyn closed her eyes.

As for Nana Doyle and Mrs. Doyle’s remains, Evelyn found them in the kitchen. Snake corpses hung everywhere—on the stove, the range hood, the refrigerator. Just as Evelyn was about to leave, a HISS HISS HISS sound came from a wooden shelf in the corner. Evelyn raised her shovel and slowly approached the source of the sound. 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

When she saw a small snake struggling to hatch from an egg, Evelyn let out a sigh of relief, but at the same time, she showed no mercy. With a swift motion, the shovel came down, and the snake, not yet fully hatched, was instantly sliced in two.

It seemed the snakes weren’t completely wiped out yet. To be safe, Evelyn decided to conduct a thorough search, leaving no corner unchecked.

It took Evelyn a full day to barely finish clearing the ninth and eighth floors. Before calling it a day, Evelyn went up to the twelfth floor to check on Officer Graham. He still hadn’t woken up.

Evelyn fed Wendy, checked the apartment inside and out once more, and finding no trace of snakes, she left the Grahams’ home.

Back home, Evelyn took a cold shower. After a long day of work, she was famished. After dinner, Evelyn took out a watermelon and ate half of it with a spoon. Full and satisfied, Evelyn flopped directly onto her bed. She was too exhausted to move. The moment she closed her eyes, she was asleep.

The next day, it was already past nine when Evelyn woke up. She had breakfast, changed into her protective suit and waterproof boots, and first went to the twelfth floor to check on Wendy and Officer Graham. Wendy was awake, clutching a filthy toy rabbit and sitting motionless on the floor. Officer Graham’s condition had also improved slightly. Evelyn fed Wendy and found a clean set of clothes for her. While changing her, Evelyn discovered that Wendy had soiled her pants. She took a few seconds to mentally prepare herself, then gritted her teeth and cleaned her up.

’Taking care of a child is so hard.’

Evelyn was doing everything she could to save Officer Graham. Besides the fact that he had helped her once, there was another reason: she wanted Wendy to still have family, even if it was just one person.

Returning to the seventh floor, Evelyn took her shovel and cleared away the snake corpses. As for the human skeletons, Evelyn didn’t touch them.

Cleaning an entire building was no easy task, especially in the high heat while trying to avoid heatstroke. Evelyn could only manage to clear one or two floors a day. It took her five days to get the building mostly clean. The two floors below the third were buried in sand and dirt. After clearing the exit, Evelyn fashioned a simple door and then returned to her home on the tenth floor.

On the sixth day, Officer Graham woke up. Although he was still very weak, his mind was much clearer. Only one of the cans Evelyn had brought up was left, along with half a bottle of water. All the glucose had been fed to Officer Graham.

When Officer Graham woke up and saw that Wendy was safe and sound, he was so emotional he hugged her tightly. He knew Evelyn had saved him. He struggled to his feet, about to kneel before her, but Evelyn quickly stopped him.

"You’re still very weak. It’s best if you lie down and don’t move."

"Ford, thank you for saving me and Wendy, and for bringing us food. It can’t be easy for you on your own. I, Chester Graham, will never forget this kindness."

"If Wendy hadn’t made a sound, I might not have come in to check," Evelyn said.

Officer Graham’s eyes were red. "I’m useless. I made Wendy suffer. By the way, the bodies of my parents and my wife?"

"They’re still in that bedroom."

Officer Graham immediately staggered to his feet, opened the bedroom door, and upon seeing the bodies of his parents and wife, he collapsed to his knees, sobbing uncontrollably.

Evelyn didn’t know what they had been through, nor did she want to. After leaving the Grahams’ apartment, Evelyn stood in the hallway. Every person from this building, every face, flashed through her mind in a fleeting procession.

Outside, the snake corpses had all rotted. The putrid flesh was covered in red-headed blowflies. They beat their wings, and a BUZZ BUZZ BUZZ sound drilled into Evelyn’s ears.

Evelyn dismantled the red brick wall on her balcony. She stored the red bricks back in her space and tossed the cement blocks out the window. She then repositioned the photovoltaic panels and the outdoor AC unit back onto the balcony.

The temperature was still rising. At forty-six degrees Celsius (115°F), Evelyn felt like the ground was smoking. The fan was no longer effective, so Evelyn had no choice but to start the generator and turn on the air conditioning.

Once Officer Graham had mostly recovered, he went out to look for food. The water downstairs had dried up, and the mudflats had cracked under the scorching heat. He went to several adjacent buildings and actually managed to bring some things back.

To thank Evelyn, he gave her half of what he had found.

"There are probably survivors in the next building."

Evelyn glanced at Officer Graham upon hearing this but didn’t say anything.

"But I didn’t get close. I heard some... unpleasant sounds. Evelyn, we need to be more vigilant. You’d better not go out."

Evelyn nodded. She already had her suspicions.

They each returned to their own apartments. Evelyn went to her balcony, took out her binoculars, and began observing the neighboring buildings.

Sure enough, on the eleventh-floor balcony of Building E, she saw a man with a cigarette between his fingers. He looked like he was doing quite well for himself.

That night, a cry of alarm came from downstairs. Evelyn rolled out of bed and went to the balcony to look. A snake had suddenly darted out and bitten a man. A group of people were downstairs trying to kill the snake, but the man who had been bitten was probably already dead.

Evelyn left her apartment with her Crossbow. She met Officer Graham in the hallway, and the two of them went downstairs, one after the other.

There were five people who had come over tonight, including the one bitten by the snake.

After they killed the snake, they quietly approached Building D. Just as they were about to push open the protective door, a Crossbow Arrow shot out, hitting the lead man directly in the heart.

Evelyn raised her eyebrows in satisfaction. ’My aim is getting better and better.’

"Who’s there? Who’s in the shadows? Come out!"

After the man fell, the three behind him looked around in terror. The night was dark. They were in the open, while Evelyn and Officer Graham were hidden. The outcome was already decided.

Evelyn fired three more Crossbow Arrows in quick succession. The last one was a bit off, hitting a man in the stomach. Evelyn and Officer Graham pushed the door open. She retrieved her Crossbow Arrows, looked at the sole survivor, and gave him a heavy kick.

"I could smell the scent of human flesh on you bastards from a mile away."

The man hunched over, wailing in pain. Officer Graham went forward and dragged him back into Building D. They didn’t bother with the other bodies.

"Let me go! I’m begging you! I didn’t do anything! I was forced!"

Evelyn slapped him across the face. The man’s head snapped to the side, and a few teeth fell out of his mouth.

Officer Graham looked at Evelyn, his eyes filled with admiration.

"Was eating people something you were forced to do, too? Speak! How many people are in your group? How many of the people you captured are still alive?"