Chapter 4

In my last life, Perry was a menace. He couldn't sleep at night and insisted on having someone play with him.

That noise attracted zombies to where we were staying.

I had to risk my neck clearing the safe zone—again.

Meanwhile, Willa wouldn't shut up about the noise wrecking her nerves. Worried it'd "stress out" her and the baby, I went to shut things down.

Didn't expect just calling out Perry would make Miranda lose it. She started flailing and screeching.

And right on cue, Willa stepped into the spotlight—telling me to let it go.

She'd been whining nonstop, but now she wanted to play the saint.

"Zombies can be killed again, but a child's only childhood should be cherished."

Please. What a steaming pile of crap.

Miranda ate that line up. After that, she was on me nonstop, always poking, always whining.

And just like that, I became the group's official villain—selfish, disruptive, the so-called threat to "group harmony."

Too bad for them, I wasn't playing nice this time.

I grabbed Perry and shoved his head deep into the couch cushions.

Instant volume drop.

"Stop it! Bullying a helpless grandma and her grandson—have you no shame?!" Miranda shrieked, flapping her arms.

I held up a finger. "Shh. Listen."

The growling outside? Way louder now.

Took them long enough to notice.

"What's going on?" the woman from the couple whispered.

The howls in the stairwell echoed loud and clear.

"S-Sounds like they're coming up..."

Silence dropped like a weight. Everyone went ghost-pale.

All eyes landed on me, waiting for answers.

I let Perry go. He bolted to Miranda, shaking like a leaf.

I shrugged, nodded at Willa. "Ask her. She wanted to play hero, so I ran for backup. Locked the door behind me..."

I turned to her. "So not only did you flop the rescue, you forgot to lock the main door?"

Heads swiveled. Willa started shaking, furious. "You're horrible! I was trying to save someone! You could've helped—he died because of you!"

I stared like she'd lost her mind. "You're giving me way too much credit. You dragged a whole horde over here and thought what, I'd solo them? I figured you had some hidden power, the way you charged in. But that was it?"

Zombies hit the sixth floor, clawing at the door.

Everyone froze.

I didn't. I looked straight at Willa. "You made this mess. Clean it up."

"Selene?!" Willa gawked like I'd slapped her. "How can you treat me like this? Aren't you my sister?"

I laughed. "Oh, now I'm your sister? I'm the older one, not your maid. You're dead weight. Can't lift, can't carry, just eat and whine. And now you've got a baby? Be real. If we weren't related, you think I'd have kept you around?"

I grabbed a big bag, dropped a smaller one on the floor.

"Guess I spoiled you too much. That's why you forgot your lane. These people? You dragged them in. Not my problem."

I nudged the bag toward her. "Enough for you and the kid. Whether you share it? Up to you."

Then I looked around.

"The rest of you? Don't bother me. I don't owe you anything."

In my last life, they called me selfish for not sharing supplies.