All Chapters of The Endgame Chronicles: Chapter 61 - Chapter 70

Hayley's territory looked completely different now. The vegetable patch had been cleared and organized. The fresh greens were stacked neatly in the shade, sorted into tidy piles. All the weeds were gone. The chicken and duck pens had been cleaned, and all broken parts were patched. The whole place looked spotless, inside and out.Hayley was more than satisfied. The soldiers really did know how to work."Boss, where do we store all these vegetables?""No rush. Wash a few for now. Tonight, we're having stew."The second the word "stew" left her mouth, the guys who had been sprawled out as if they didn't have a care in the world suddenly perked up with shining eyes. Before long, Hayley had set up a big pot over the fire. Beef and chicken bones went in first to make a hearty, golden broth, followed by a packet of seasoning.Then came the good stuff. Fresh meats, fish, and crisp vegetables were laid out like a feast. Ethan and the others couldn't help but lick their lips in antici

"It's the apocalypse. Food's tight. We don't owe her anything, and she sure as hell doesn't owe us food!" one of the soldiers said, a voice of reason."We didn't even eat her stew!""You did eat her ribs," Leonard cut in. "And you used her medicine."His eyes lingered on Hayley for a moment, serious and steady. Hayley coming out like this was her way of telling him she had noticed everything he'd done. Yet she had never called him out or scolded him. That meant she wasn't actually stingy or unreasonable—otherwise, she wouldn't have let things slide so many times.That was kindness. And she'd chosen to pass that kindness through him to the others. But they still hadn't figured it out."She is actually really decent," Leonard said. "She's a good person. You guys have her completely wrong.""Leonard, stop defending her!""Yeah, no matter what, we're not sticking with her. If you want to, fine. But once the captain wakes up, we're heading back.""My mom's still at Base K1. I ha

Sending people out to expand the territory actually increased Hayley's land.That made her wonder—if the residents of her base moved outward and settled more ground, would that count as hers too? She wanted to test it, but she only had one household living under her roof. And when it came to accepting new residents, she was cautious.The truth was, she didn't really like people.After finishing her run, Hayley returned to the base and suddenly found herself with nothing to do. She wasn't used to being idle.She wasn't about to go and expand land herself. Not while there were outsiders in her shelter. She would never leave it unguarded.So, after stretching and cooling down, she stepped into the open space and started practicing combat drills.Ethan, stuck with cooking duty, heard the sharp thuds of her movements and turned his head. What he saw made his jaw drop.Damn. She was strong.The way Hayley fought was unbelievable. There was so much power behind her punches and kicks

People always said soldiers were good with their hands. That they could fix, build, and grow just about anything. Hayley had to admit that that was true.They reorganized the vegetable garden as well, doubling the farmland. Before, she used to just toss the seeds wherever and hope for the best. The area around the shelter wasn't used efficiently at all. Now, everything was carefully sectioned and replanned, which meant the harvest would be several times larger than before.The fish and shrimp ponds were also redone. They dug a new pit about 15 feet deep next to the old one, then rerouted the existing pond water to expand it. With more space, the fish and shrimp would thrive and multiply faster.Everyone worked fast and hard, which made Hayley pretty pleased.During the day, she sent Leonard and three others out to explore and expand the territory, while the rest stayed behind to help rebuild the base. In exchange, she promised them two meals a day.Yep. Two was enough.As a

Everyone agreed that everything Hayley served was amazing.A few pieces of beef and potatoes with a spoonful of pasta, soaked in that rich, savory sauce—it was so good that they could die right there and be content.It was absolute heaven."Boss, you didn't get much! Here, take mine."Hayley had eaten about half of the pasta in her pot before losing interest. Watching them fight over food like wild animals kind of killed her appetite. She felt that there was too much drool everywhere. Maybe she should just eat alone from now on.Then, Leonard slid a plate piled high with casserole toward her."This part hasn't been touched," he said.Leonard always ate neatly, even when he was starving. He liked to portion his food carefully and take his time. The plate he handed over was the first one he'd served himself, still mostly untouched.Hayley glanced at it and shook her head. "Nah, you eat it. I'm full."The moment she said that, everyone turned to stare at her."You're really fu