Melody Summers closed the door and told Joyce Lawson what was going on.

"...I also dealt with the kidnapper who was left here on guard. It’s safe for now, so you don’t have to worry."

"The supplies the kidnappers took from your apartment are in the living room. Just take them back. Your mother and brother are tied up in the master bedroom’s bathroom... I’ll leave you to handle them."

Hearing Melody Summers’s words, Joyce Lawson’s anxious heart finally settled.

For Joyce Lawson, the night had been far too long and harrowing. First, kidnappers broke into her home, then she was betrayed by her own family and nearly killed. It was as if she’d taken a stroll through the gates of hell.

Now that the crisis had finally passed, Joyce Lawson heaved a long sigh. Her taut nerves finally relaxed, and she felt a sense of profound relief.

Joyce Lawson’s eyes were slightly red. She looked up at Melody Summers and said in a choked voice, "Summers, thank you for saving me tonight. If you hadn’t shown up when you did, I might have been thrown off the balcony and frozen to death by now..."

Melody Summers dreaded hearing the word "saved." At Joyce’s words, she quickly waved her hand. "Please, don’t say that. Those three thugs broke into your apartment tonight; they might have come to mine tomorrow! Helping you was helping myself. Besides, neighbors are supposed to help each other. There’s no need to be so formal."

Melody Summers then pointed to the supplies in the living room. "Joyce, you should hurry and move this stuff back. It’s getting late, and I hear the temperature is supposed to drop again tomorrow. Get your things sorted out and stay inside. We can deal with everything else after this cold disaster is over."

"With the way things are now, the police can’t make house calls. You can call the two officers at the emergency response office and report it to them first. When the police come to investigate after the cold disaster is over, I’ll be your witness."

Joyce Lawson nodded, thanked Melody Summers again, and then started moving the supplies.

After saying goodbye to Joyce Lawson, Melody Summers headed home.

...

Melody Summers tiptoed back into her apartment to find it was nearly four in the morning. She didn’t even have the energy to shower, simply collapsing onto the fluffy carpet in her bedroom.

’Titus Lowell and his two men went to 1602 yesterday and broke into 1601 today,’ Melody thought. ’There are only four households on the 16th floor. It’s obvious who their next target would have been...’

’Good thing I went out to check on things tonight and took care of them all at once. Otherwise, leaving them around would have been a serious threat.’

’This cold disaster is supposed to last until the end of the year, at least. I hope no more desperados like that show up in this building during that time.’

With these thoughts, Melody Summers drifted deep into sleep.

...

Meanwhile, after moving all of her family’s supplies back to her apartment, Joyce Lawson went to the master bedroom’s bathroom and freed her mother and brother.

Once free, Yvonne York looked at her daughter in surprise. "Joyce, what are you doing here? ...Where are those bad men?"

There was surprise and fear in Yvonne York’s eyes as she looked at Joyce, but not a single shred of guilt. It was as if the fact that she had just actively pushed her daughter out to be savaged by the kidnappers simply hadn’t happened.

Joyce Lawson lowered her gaze and replied softly, "Those kidnappers ran off. Our neighbor next door helped us this time... Let’s go home first. It’s too cold here. I’ll explain everything once we’re back."

Hearing this, Yvonne York and Gregory Lawson quickly nodded. Of course, they didn’t dare linger—this was the kidnappers’ apartment, after all!

So they scrambled up, helping each other back to their own apartment.

The moment the door closed, both Yvonne York and her son, Gregory Lawson, wore expressions of relief, the look of people who had just survived a catastrophe.

Yvonne ached with pity as she supported Gregory, whose ribs had been broken. As she helped him toward the bedroom, she shouted, "Husband! What’s wrong with you? The kidnappers are gone, why didn’t you come get us! Did you know? They broke our son’s ribs..."

However, the moment she entered the bedroom, Yvonne’s voice died in her throat.

Staring at the completely empty bedroom, Yvonne froze, seemingly unable to process what she was seeing.

She frowned slightly and turned back to Joyce, her gaze vacant. "Joyce, where are your father and grandmother? I don’t see them. Where did they go?"

Hearing this, Joyce’s gaze darkened. She pursed her lips and walked into the bedroom without a word.

As Yvonne watched in confusion, Joyce lifted her head. With a sadness in her eyes that seemed to take effort to conjure, she looked at her mother and said softly, "Mom, you need to be strong..."

Seeing her daughter’s expression, a terrible premonition suddenly washed over Yvonne.

She gripped Joyce’s hand tightly, pressing anxiously, "Joyce, what is it? Just tell us!"

Joyce took a deep breath, her gaze falling to the floor to hide the emotion in her eyes. "...Dad and Grandma... are dead."

Though it was just a few words, the sentence struck like a bolt from the blue. Yvonne’s face instantly turned deathly pale, and even Gregory looked as if he’d been frightened into a stupor. Both of them stared blankly at Joyce.

Seeing her mother and brother standing there, speechless and stupefied, Joyce took another deep breath and continued, "After the kidnappers took you two, they killed Dad and Grandma. They threw their bodies out the window... They were going to kill me, too, but our neighbor heard the commotion and broke in, saving me."

The room fell deathly silent. A moment later, Yvonne let out a gut-wrenching shriek. "AH! How could this be!"

Then, as if all her strength had abandoned her, she collapsed to her knees. Leaning forward, she wrapped her arms tightly around Gregory and wailed, "How could your father just be gone like that! Oh, my son, how am I supposed to go on, raising you all by myself!"

Held tightly in his mother’s embrace, Gregory didn’t cry. He seemed to still be in a daze, his lips moving without a sound.

Joyce watched the mother and son embrace with cold eyes, yet her words were comforting. "Mom, don’t be sad. Dad and Grandma are gone, but we have to keep living..."

Yvonne, however, didn’t seem to hear Joyce at all. She just clung to Gregory, wailing ceaselessly.

The crying started to annoy Joyce. After a moment’s thought, she said, "Mom, you’re being too loud. What if someone hears you? If they find out Dad’s gone and we’re just a widow and her children, I’m afraid someone else might try to break in!"

At Joyce’s words, Yvonne immediately stopped. She choked back her sobs with a strangled GACK.

Thinking of her dead husband and mother-in-law, Yvonne asked Joyce in a trembling voice, "Then... what about your father and grandmother’s bodies...?"

The thought that the bodies of her husband and mother-in-law were just downstairs made Yvonne’s stomach churn with panic.

Joyce sighed. "Mom, there’s a blizzard outside. We can’t get out, and the police can’t get here. We’ll have to wait until this cold disaster is over. Once it’s over, we’ll figure out a way to give Dad and Grandma a proper burial."

The words had barely left Joyce’s lips when, before Yvonne could respond, Gregory suddenly sprang into action.

He tore himself from Yvonne’s arms, ran up to Joyce, and started punching and kicking her. "You worthless bitch!" he screamed as he beat her. "I want Grandma! I want Dad! You worthless bitch! Why didn’t you die instead! I’ll kill you!"