Chapter 2

"I can make way for Iris, but can I at least have some time to move out?"

Charles clearly hadn't expected me to relent so easily, so he took a while to process what I'd said. However, thinking that I was on death's door and that I was no threat to him, he nodded nonchalantly. "And take those rags out with you! It's going to take up space and delay me from stocking up on ice!"

Following the direction he pointed, I saw the bedding set, a gift from my mother when I got married, tossed haphazardly on the floor.

My parents had been divorced since I was young, and I grew up with my mother. Not long after I got married, however, she passed away from illness.

Even without Charles saying it, there was no way I was leaving something this precious to them! Besides, they'd know how important any bit of warmth was during the ice age.

"These quilts and thick clothes take up too much space! Throw them all away!"

After barking out those orders, Charles rushed out the front door, making a beeline for the supermarket. Meanwhile, Kate curled her lip mockingly. "If I got cancer, I'd just find a place to shrivel up and die instead of dragging others down!"

I scoffed inwardly. Would she be able to keep her word once she knew the truth?

And so, I brought all the thick clothes from the house with me. I packed Charles' and his parents' clothes and threw them straight into a used-clothing donation bin, while I had a delivery service move my belongings to a six-story self-built house on the outskirts of town.

That house was left by my maternal grandparents, and it was located on high ground. Before my mother passed away, she told me not to tell my husband about it, saying that if anything ever happened, that house would be my way out.

At that moment, I felt deeply grateful for my mother's foresight.

After that, I went to the bank and reported my bank card lost, so that Charles couldn't touch a single cent of my money. Later, I went to the hospital and did another round of tests, and sure enough, there had been a mistake.

Now, I was completely convinced by what the comments had revealed to me.

Placing Kate's diagnosis at the entrance of their house, I headed straight to the mall, but I received a call from Charles on the way there.

The moment I picked up, his furious voice came through, "Jennie, why can't I use your card?!"

I acted surprised, gasping softly, "I have no idea! Maybe the card's broken?"

He roared angrily, "What am I supposed to do now? I just bought 200,000 dollars' worth of supplies!"

I thought for a moment, then replied, "Doesn't Mom have that amount in her account? Go take it from her, and I'll transfer the amount back to her after I fix things at the bank."

With a cold huff, Charles hung up.

With my newly issued bank card, I went to a large supermarket and purchased all kinds of supplies—rice, flour, grains, oil, seasonings, bottled water, military rations, freeze-dried vegetables…

Tissues, sanitary pads, shampoo, skincare products, and other daily necessities, plus power banks, thermal blankets, heat packs, and down jackets...

Essential medicine, vitamins, candles, and generators were also must-haves.

According to the comments, the ice age would last about a year and a half, and what I'd stocked was enough to last me three whole years.

It took five full truckloads to transport everything.

After returning home, I checked in on the Dennings through the surveillance footage. The cameras had been installed not long ago, a last-ditch effort from me to show Charles how his parents treated me. I installed those hidden cameras in the living room, and the family had no idea. I didn't expect them to come in handy now.

Through the footage, I saw Charles directing people to move five refrigerators and five cooling units into the house. Then, he hired workers to build his ice house, with ice blocks, cold drinks and ice cream fully stocked, and more supplies being carried in non-stop.

Cramming all that into a 650-square-foot apartment really was quite the feat.