002

Chapter 2 

The apartment Elena Voss rented sat close to the university—just a short walk outside, right in the heart of the University District.

It was Saturday, so the streets were crowded and lively. Groups of students strolled hand in hand, laughing and chatting.

Small diners and food stalls were packed, and the smell of food drifted through the air for blocks.

At first Elena didn’t think much of it, but as soon as the savory scent reached her nose, her stomach growled loudly.

It had been years since she’d had a proper, filling meal. Back in her hardest days, she had survived on tree bark, weed roots, and even rat meat—and at the time, those had felt like a delicacy.

Her mouth watered. Elena headed straight to the deli she used to visit all the time—Gnocchi Deli. She ordered a huge portion of gnocchi, a sloppy joe, and a plate stacked high with mini bagels. She devoured them like she hadn’t eaten in weeks. No one else knew, but she had spent countless nights in her past life starving, dreaming of the taste of this gnocchi.

When she was done, she packed up the four mini bagels that were left and carried them out.

She rode her scooter to a quiet spot and tested her storage space, putting the mini bagels inside to see if they would stay fresh.

Just as she was about to set off again, her phone buzzed with a text notification—60,000 dollars had been deposited into her account. Along with it came a short message from her mom.

“Go check out some cars, but don’t buy anything yet. Your dad already bought a ticket—he’ll be there tomorrow.”

Dad is coming tomorrow? Of course—he’s probably worried about me and wants to help me with the car.

A wave of emotion hit Elena, and her eyes stung.

Parents really were the ones who loved her the most. In her past life, her greatest regret had been not making it back in time to reunite with them.

This time, she swore, that mistake would never happen again.

She quickly changed her plans.

Originally, she wanted to buy what supplies she could and then head straight back to Northhaven. But money was tight, and the little she had was like a drop in the bucket.

Since her dad was coming, why didn’t she ask her mom to come too?

The three of them could stockpile enough supplies together in Aetheria before heading back north to Northhaven. That way, even if someone noticed their hoarding, it wouldn’t matter.

When the end of the world came, communication would break down and the roads would be blocked. From the south to the north, it was more than 600 miles.

Even if someone noticed how much food and supplies they had stored, no one would be able to do anything about it.

Elena called her mom right away.  

“Thanks, Mom, I got the money. Can you come with Dad tomorrow too?”

Sophia wanted to, but she hesitated. “I can’t, sweetie. I’d be gone for a few days; who’s going to take Leo to school? He can’t just be left on his own.”

Elena froze. She had completely forgotten about that. After a moment of thought, she suggested, “Sometimes Leo eats dinner at Ruth’s house anyway. Maybe we could ask her to take him to school for a few days? It won’t be long. Classes are going to shut down soon anyway.”

Ruth Keller was an old lady who lived downstairs. She had been close to the Voss family for years.

She had a grandson named Marco Keller, who was about seven years older than Elena. When Ruth was busy, Marco—or Maro, as they called him—used to eat at their house.

Later, when Elena was in school and her parents were busy with business, she would often go to Ruth’s place for dinner.

Their families were close, so asking Ruth to look after Leo Voss was something they could trust completely.

But Sophia caught on right away and pressed her, “Elena, what’s going on? Why do you ask me to come along?”

Elena didn’t even have to pretend. Just the memory of her family being torn apart in her past life made her nose sting and her voice catch.

“Mom, something’s happening. Please, you and Dad should come tomorrow as soon as you can. And bring the savings account books from home.”

Sophia’s voice sharpened with worry. “What is it? Tell me now! Elena, are you… pregnant?”

But she quickly realized that didn’t make sense. Pregnancy alone wouldn’t explain why Elena needed the savings books too.

“I’m sorry, Mom,” Elena said softly. “Something’s going on, but it’s not safe to explain over the phone. Please don’t panic. Just be careful on the way. We’ll talk when we meet tomorrow.”

Before her mom could ask more, Elena ended the call.

She knew her parents would worry, but it was the only way to get them to rush over right away.

Quietly, she apologized in her heart.

Then she changed her plan again. She rented a warehouse, then went to the used car market and picked up a beat-up van. After stripping out the back seats, she drove straight to the biggest farmer’s market in Rivermark.

On the way, both Marcus Voss and Sophia called her a couple of times. Each time she answered, Elena just urged them to get to Aetheria as soon as possible before hanging up.

At the market, she walked the aisles first, memorizing the prices. Once she had a clear picture, she picked the busiest shop that sold bulk grains and cooking oil.

Money was tight, so she pretended to be buying for the family business. “I’ll take two tons of rice, two tons of flour,” she said, “and about 2,000 pounds of grits, sorghum flour, cornmeal, brown rice, wild rice, and barley.”

When she saw wheat and short-grain white rice—things her family often ate—she ordered 2,000 pounds of each.

She also stocked up on beans. Marcus loved eating kidney beans, especially in a hearty chili during the holidays. P***o beans could be mashed into refried beans or cooked into a warm bean dip. Green beans were perfect for sprouting freshness at the table or turned into a casserole for hot summer days.

These were all essentials, so she bought 1,000 pounds of each. For the rest of the beans, she asked for a combined 1,000 pounds.

Since everything was at wholesale prices, the total came to just over 30,000 dollars.

The shop owner was a generous woman. With a wave of her hand, she said, “Sweetheart, you’re buying a lot. I can’t give you any more discounts, but I’ll throw in two extra 50-pound bags of rice for you.”

Free food was free food. Elena agreed right away.

It sounded like a massive haul, but in truth, two trips with the van were enough to move most of it.

The warehouse she had rented was big, so she simply drove the van inside, locked the doors, and transferred everything into her storage space.

By now, three hours had passed since she had put the mini bagels inside. She pulled them out. They looked exactly the same as when she had placed them in—still steaming faintly, as if fresh from the deli.

Her storage space could preserve food perfectly.

Relief washed over her, as if a heavy stone had finally been lifted from her heart.

Sophia had sent her 60,000 dollars, and she herself still had just over 2,000 dollars left.

After covering the most important staples—rice, flour, grains, and oil—she withdrew the last 28,000 dollars in cash and went shopping for seasonings.

To avoid suspicion, she didn’t buy everything at once. At one store she bought 500 pounds of salt, then spread her purchases across a few others—spices, herbs, and other kitchen essentials—spending about 5,000 dollars.

She finished by picking up 500 pounds of sugar, which cost another 2,500 dollars.

At that point, she only had a few thousand dollars left, so she decided to spend it all on peanut butter, cheese spreads, canned tuna, and canned beef stew.

She knew from experience that once the world collapsed, these little luxuries would become priceless. People would trade anything for them.

A spoonful of canned food could turn plain grains into a feast, and the salt content kept them from spoiling.

In her last life, she had once stumbled into trading for two jars of mushroom steak sauce. She had stretched them out for months, eating just a little at a time.

Now, standing in front of shelves stacked neatly with jars and cans, her mouth watered. She wanted more, but her money wasn’t enough.

She also needed shelving itself—without proper racks to organize things, her storage space would run out of room quickly.

She made a mental note of both items and drove the van back to the warehouse, unloading the full load into her space.

As she worked, she was already thinking about how she could force Ryan to pay back what he owed her. Just then, her phone rang. She glanced at the screen. Who else would it be but Ryan?

A cold smile tugged at her lips. The birthmark on her face had always made her self-conscious.

That was why, when she got into one of the nation’s top universities and the tall, charming student council president, Ryan, had started chasing her, she had fallen so quickly.

Back then, she had no idea that beneath his handsome smile was a selfish, twisted heart. Only after living through the nightmare of the apocalypse had she seen his true nature.

She pressed the answer b

utton.

Ryan’s smooth voice came through right away. “Babe, what do you want for dinner tonight? I’ll cook something and bring it over.”