"Serena, you should wash your face. I have some ointment here you can use."

Serena Lynch nodded. "Okay."

She had taken a nasty fall. Her forehead and chin were scraped open, and she had cuts on her arms and knees. Chase Underwood wet a towel and carefully wiped Serena Lynch’s face while Annie stood by, watching her anxiously.

"Does it hurt a lot, Mommy?"

Serena Lynch shook her head. "It doesn’t hurt at all."

"You’re lying, Mommy. You’re bleeding, so it must hurt."

Serena Lynch pulled Annie into her arms. "It really doesn’t hurt. It’s just a tiny scrape, and it’ll heal quickly. Does Annie need to use the bathroom?"

Annie nodded. After applying the ointment to Serena Lynch’s cuts, Chase Underwood took a torch and carried Annie outside.

Once the water boiled, Evelyn Ford crumbled a hardtack biscuit into a bowl, added hot water and salt, and ate it with some Dried Meat.

After she finished eating, Evelyn Ford lay down immediately. Her eyelids felt heavy, and she was exhausted. Ronan Kendrick wiped her face, took off her shoes, and re-dressed the wounds on the soles of her feet.

She slept for nearly seven or eight hours. When she woke up, nothing had changed. If anything, the swarm of insects outside seemed to be growing. The sky remained oppressively dark, and the sweltering heat made it difficult to breathe.

Mina and Lola lay beside her. Evelyn Ford reached out and stroked their small heads. "I’m afraid we can’t keep traveling."

Evelyn Ford got up and looked out the window. Seeing that she was awake, Serena Lynch immediately came over.

"Someone was outside shouting your name earlier. I think someone else got bitten by the insects."

Evelyn was surprised she had slept so soundly. "I didn’t hear a thing. Are they gone?"

"They left a while ago. They were lingering outside, cursing and grumbling, until Ronan Kendrick taught them a lesson. They scurried off after that."

"Where are Ronan and Chase?"

"They went out to find wood. They’ve been gone for about an hour."

Evelyn Ford nodded. Given the circumstances, they needed to find not only wood but also a source of water. If they were stuck here because of the insects, once their food and water ran out, all they could do was wait to die.

A wave of crying drifted up from downstairs. Serena Lynch sighed in despair. "Is Heaven even going to let us live? It won’t give us a single moment to catch our breath."

Evelyn Ford gazed out the window, her brows tightly knitted.

An hour later, Ronan Kendrick and Chase Underwood came back. Along with wood, they had also brought back a good number of clothes.

"There are so many people scavenging for supplies outside. Everyone got along pretty well when we were on the road, but just now, someone actually tried to rob me of my clothes. Serena, it’s best if you guys don’t go out. A lot of people are being driven mad. They were just out there, screaming and shouting." Chase Underwood’s face was pale with lingering fear.

Even in civilized times during an economic downturn, crime rates were often high. There were countless news reports of people venting their frustrations by attacking others in the streets. And now, after being battered by one disaster after another, how many people could still hold on to their reason? How many still retained their humanity?

Every sudden change heralded the coming of a riot.

Evelyn Ford gripped Ronan Kendrick’s arm tightly and whispered, "Ronan, don’t go out by yourself."

Ronan Kendrick stroked her head. "Alright. I won’t."

’There are still plenty of compressed biscuits and canned goods in my space,’ Evelyn thought. She planned to find an opportunity to hand them out. Everyone’s morale was dangerously low right now. A little food might be the last lifeline for their humanity.

But the most important thing was water. If they ran out of food, they could always catch the insects, pull off their heads, and eat them. But without water, death was certain.

—

"Serena, you all stay here. Ronan and I are going to see if we can find any water."

"Be careful, Evelyn. Take this knife." Serena Lynch offered Evelyn their only machete, but Evelyn didn’t take it.

"You keep it for protection. We have our own knives. Just help me look after the little squirrel and the colorful bird. We’ll be back soon."

Fully geared up, they left the house. Evelyn Ford took out a compass, but she had no idea which direction to go.

"This way."

Ronan Kendrick led her down a small path to the left. After walking for about half an hour, they came to what looked like a park, but its riverbed was completely dry. There was no water.

"I doubt we’ll find any water," Evelyn said. "I’m going to take some things out of my storage. We’ll say we found it while we were scavenging. We can share it with everyone to at least give them some hope."

Ronan Kendrick had no objections. Evelyn Ford took out three cases of compressed biscuits and two cases of canned goods. One of the cases was full of canned herring.

Ronan Kendrick shook his head. "They’re too clean."

"We’ll rub some soot on them and put them in a burlap sack."

This was all Evelyn could do. Back in the building, she left a few items at the others’ doors before she and Ronan Kendrick headed upstairs with the rest.

"Did you find more clothes?" Serena Lynch asked as she opened the door. Seeing Ronan Kendrick shouldering a large burlap sack, she rushed to help him set it down.

"It’s not clothes. Serena, go get everyone else."

Serena Lynch and Chase Underwood exchanged a glance, both noticing the grave expression in Evelyn’s eyes.

"Okay, I’ll go right now."

Once Taylor Vance, Officer Graham, and Quincy had all gathered, Ronan Kendrick emptied the contents of the burlap sack onto the floor.

"This... this is..." Taylor Vance was so stunned he couldn’t speak for a long moment.

"Ronan and I got lucky. We found this stuff in a collapsed villa. Canned food and compressed biscuits have a long shelf life, so they should be fine to eat. Let’s divide it all up."

"You’re going to share this with everyone?" Zion Lowell asked, needing to confirm. This was food, after all.

"Yes. I want all of us to survive this together."

Hearing this, Taylor Vance’s eyes instantly reddened, as did the others’.

"Evelyn, Ronan, thank you. But since you’re the ones who found it, you have to take a larger share."

Evelyn was about to say something, but Taylor Vance cut her off. "You have to take more."

Once it was all divided, no one ended up with a large amount.

Evelyn looked at the few cans of herring she got back as her share, torn between exasperation and laughter.

Meanwhile, the people who found the biscuits and cans she had left at their doors thought they’d been blessed by the heavens. They secretly hid their windfalls, not daring to tell anyone for fear of discovery.

On the fifth day of being trapped in Danver, Evelyn Ford noticed the temperature had dropped to thirty degrees Celsius. In addition to the insects, the sky was now filled with crows.

From ancient times to the present, it has been a deeply ingrained belief that crows are a bad omen. Their appearance foretells either death or disaster.

The survivors continued to take turns going out in search of supplies and water, but Danver was a dead city. Where could anyone find food or water amidst the endless rubble?

People started turning their attention to the crows and insects. Some fashioned nets to catch the insects, which they then stir-fried over a high flame, ground into a powder, and formed into "insect patties."

Catching the crows wasn’t easy, but people were resourceful. They made slingshots and fired in volleys, eventually managing to bring some down.

On the sixth day, the few people who had been bitten by the insects began to exhibit strange symptoms: twitching, vomiting, full-body convulsions, and an unbearable, deep-seated pain that felt as if it was in their very veins.

Evelyn knew what was happening. They were going into withdrawal.

Addiction meant becoming living blood bags for the insects, their personal food supply. The only way to stop the pain was to be bitten again.