The Cold Draws Near

RAYNA

By the following morning, the atmosphere around the villa had completely changed. The contractors were no longer working at the relaxed pace they had maintained before the warning. 

Every man seemed to understand that time was running out, and the sound of drills, hammers, and heavy machinery filled the estate from before sunrise. 

I stood on the second-floor terrace with a cup of coffee in my hand, watching another convoy of supply trucks crawl through the gates while the security guards checked every vehicle before allowing it farther inside.

My phone rang, I glanced at the screen and answered immediately. “Mike?”

“Boss, we have a problem.” I placed the cup on the railing. “What happened?”

“The northern supplier just cancelled the entire food shipment.” My expression hardened. “Why?”

“He says his drivers refused to make the trip and the roads are already getting dangerous.”

“How dangerous?”

“Several sections of the mountain highway are covered in ice.” 

I looked toward the distant road, It was still clear from where I stood, but a strange grey haze had begun settling over the mountains. “Call him back,” I said. “Tell him I'll pay five times the original delivery f*e.”

“I already offered double.”

“Offer five.”

“He says money isn't the problem.”

“Then find someone else.”

“I've already contacted three other suppliers.”

“And?”

“They're all saying the same thing.”

I remained silent for a moment, thinking about how 

quickly everything had changed. Yesterday, people were still going about their normal lives and today, drivers were already refusing to travel.

“Mike, listen carefully,” I said. “I don't care how difficult it becomes. I want enough food inside this estate to last at least two years. If you have to buy directly from manufacturers, do it. If you have to charter private trucks, do it. If you have to empty an entire warehouse, empty it.”

“Understood.”

“And don't forget the medicine.”

“I won't.”

I ended the call and immediately dialed another number.

“Hello?”

“Is this Mr. Chen?”

“Yes.”

“This is Rayna. I need the remaining generators delivered today.” There was a pause. “Ma'am, the weather—”

“I know about the weather.”

“The transport company is refusing to send anyone up the mountain.”

“I'll send my own vehicles.”

“That won't be safe.”

“I didn't ask whether it was safe.” I paused. “I need those generators today. How many do you have ready?”

“Six.”

“I'll take all six.”

“There's another buyer—”

“I'll pay twice what they're offering.” He hesitated. “Three times,” I added.

“Mrs. Rayna—”

“Five times. Give me five minutes to arrange the transfer, and the generators are mine.” Another silence followed. “Deal.”

“Good. Have everything packed.”

I ended the call and immediately contacted Mike again. “Boss?”

“Send two of our trucks to pick up six generators.”

“Six?”

“All of them.”

“Where?”

I gave him the address and ended the call before he could argue. I turned around and walked downstairs, heading toward the basement to check the construction progress myself. 

The moment I reached the lower level, the foreman hurried toward me, wiping sweat from his forehead.

“Mrs. Rayna, we're almost finished with the main storage section.”

“How long?”

“Four hours.”

“Good.”

He pointed toward the workers. “The insulation team is finishing the western wall, and the heating engineers are installing the final pipes.”

“What about the emergency ventilation?”

“Almost done.”

“Water filtration?”

“It was installed yesterday.”

“Backup batteries?”

“They're being connected now.”

I nodded and continued walking through the basement, checking everything carefully. In my previous life, this was where people made mistakes. 

They focused on food and forgot about ventilation, they stored fuel and forgot about water. They bought generators and forgot that generators needed maintenance. I wasn't going to make any of those mistakes again.

My phone vibrated, I pulled it out and saw a message from Mike… “The temperature has dropped again.” I immediately called him. “How much?”

“Eight degrees in the last six hours.”

I stopped walking. “Eight?”

“Yes.”

“What does the weather service say?”

“They're calling it an abnormal atmospheric event.” I laughed coldly. “Of course they are.”

“What do you mean?”

“Nothing. Just keep moving the supplies.”

I ended the call and stood there for several seconds… eight degrees in six hours, the timeline was accelerating again.

I looked toward the basement entrance. “Everyone needs to work faster,” I told the foreman. “I want this entire level completed before tomorrow morning.” He looked worried. “Ma'am, we'll need to work through the night.”

“Then work through the night.”

I turned and walked upstairs. When I reached the living room, I found Sera sitting beside the window with one of the housekeepers, watching the workers outside. “Mommy!”She ran toward me. I bent down and caught her.

“Why are you awake from your nap?”

“I wasn't sleeping.”

“You were supposed to.”

“I wanted to watch them.” She pointed toward the garden. “Look. They're carrying big things.”

“Those are building materials.”

“Are they making our house stronger?” I smiled. “Yes.”

“Why?”

“So we'll be safe.”

She nodded seriously before wrapping her arms 

around my neck. “Mommy?”

“Yes?”

“Are we going somewhere?”

“No.”

“Then why are you making everything safe?” I looked into her innocent eyes. “Because sometimes bad weather comes.” She thought about it for a moment. “Like rain?”

“Much worse.” She frowned. “But you'll protect me, right?” I kissed her forehead. “Always.”

A loud rumble suddenly came from outside, Sera turned toward the window as another supply truck entered the estate. I carried her closer to the glass, and we watched the workers unload another shipment of food.

For a moment, everything seemed almost normal and that was what frightened me most. The mountains were still green, the sky was still visible through the clouds and people were still driving through the city below, unaware that the world they knew was running out of time.

For me it was different because I knew what was coming….The cold, hunger. power failures, desperate people who would do anything for warmth and food and this time, I would be ready.

My phone rang again and I looked at the screen,It was the security supervisor. “Mrs. Rayna, the perimeter inspection is complete.”

“Any problems?”

“Nothing serious but with the weather changing this quickly, I recommend we increase the night patrols.”

“Do it.”

“Yes, ma'am.”

“And I want someone with serious survival and military experience overseeing the perimeter before the temperature drops further.” There was a brief pause. “I'll begin looking immediately.”

“Don't look for someone ordinary,” I said. “Find me the best person you can.”

“Yes, ma'am.”

I ended the call and looked down at Sera, she was still watching the workers, I held her closer. The time for preparation was disappearing and I intended to use every remaining hour.