Magic Space: Struggling to Survive in the Apocalypse-Chapter 126: Heaven Never Seals Off All Exits
"Can I take out the colored contacts now?" He felt like he couldn’t see clearly with them in, and they were scratchy and uncomfortable.
Evelyn Ford had a pretty good idea of what he was thinking. He assumed that now that he’d killed the person—or people—who knew his secret, he was safe.
"You can’t."
Ronan Kendrick frowned, clearly unhappy. He pried out the contacts and blinked in discomfort.
Evelyn Ford stared at his mismatched eyes, her feelings complicated.
"Are you really that clueless? This place is full of prying eyes. Even if no one knows about your abilities, people will still think you’re a monster. In a situation like this, desperate people need an outlet, and you’ll be the first one they turn on. Do you have any idea what happens to ’monsters’? Let me tell you. They’re either beaten to death with clubs, tied up and burned alive, or drowned. People are barely holding it together right now. If someone steps up and claims that killing you will make everything right again, do you really think you’d survive? No matter how strong you are, can you fight off tens of thousands of people? Can you stop bombs and bullets?"
’He really was locked in that lab until he became an idiot. Even though he’s ruthless, he’s still a clueless fool.’
Ronan Kendrick silently put the colored contacts back in. Evelyn Ford hmphed.
"I think you might need to wear them, too."
Evelyn Ford took the mirror and glanced at her reflection. Sure enough, her irises had become much lighter again. Still, brown was a perfectly normal eye color, so she wasn’t too worried.
"I don’t need them."
Fine, whatever she said, went. Ronan Kendrick knew better than to argue and kept quiet.
"You can go back to 602 now. I’m going to sleep."
Ronan Kendrick stared at her in shock. After a moment, he managed to choke out, "I haven’t eaten yet."
Evelyn Ford was speechless.
After feeding her high-maintenance guest and sending him away, Evelyn Ford was too exhausted to move. She collapsed onto the bed and was fast asleep within five seconds.
"Inspection! Inspection! Everyone, open your doors and come out for inspection!"
In the dead of night, someone suddenly blew a whistle outside. Startled awake, Evelyn Ford scrambled out of bed.
"Inspection! Everyone, open your doors and come out!"
The patrol members were armed with electric batons and knives. Evelyn Ford noticed their guns were gone, likely confiscated by the base administration.
A knock came at the door. Guessing it was Ronan Kendrick, Evelyn Ford quickly opened it.
"Hide Mina and Lola."
He had barely finished speaking when a sharp whistle blew, and everyone in the building came out.
Evelyn Ford put Mina and Lola in a bag, calming them down before tucking them under the covers.
By then, the patrol team had reached the sixth floor. Evelyn Ford and Ronan Kendrick opened their doors and stepped out, and the patrol members immediately approached them.
"Open your doors. We’re inspecting."
The doors to 601 and 602 were opened. The patrolmen went inside each apartment, took a quick look around, and came back out, having found nothing amiss.
"Now for the blood test." He took out two test strips and told Evelyn Ford and Ronan Kendrick to drip blood onto them. If the blood dispersed, the patrol would take them away.
The test strips were coated with something. Evelyn Ford sniffed one and caught a strong medicinal scent. They were for testing for parasitic infection.
’This method is pretty clever,’ she thought, ’but I wonder how accurate it is.’
The patrolman offered her a knife, but Evelyn Ford ignored it. She pulled a small dagger from her pocket, made a tiny cut on her index finger, and let a drop of blood fall onto the strip. The blood beaded on the surface without spreading.
Ronan Kendrick did the same, and his blood also held its shape. The patrolman opened a notebook and placed a checkmark next to their apartment numbers.
"You can go back inside."
He turned and headed for 603. Evelyn Ford and Ronan Kendrick exchanged a look, then each returned to their respective rooms.
—
「Early the next morning」, Evelyn Ford and Ronan Kendrick went to The West Courtyard. Evelyn was worried about Wendy, so they had rushed over right after a hasty breakfast.
When they arrived, Quincy, Roy Henderson, and Owen Chapman were already there with Officer Graham.
"Miss Ford, a hug!"
Seeing Evelyn Ford, Wendy struggled to sit up. Evelyn went over and hugged her, checking her condition. The little girl was still listless, but her color was much better.
"Has she thrown up at all today?"
Officer Graham nodded. "Twice this morning, but there was no blood, and no more worms."
Evelyn Ford finally felt relieved.
"It looks like the worms in Wendy’s system have been cleared out. By the way, did you all get your blood tested?"
A look of lingering fear still clung to Officer Graham. "We did. A large group came around four in the morning, checking every room. Everyone had to do it."
"Miss Ford, why did I have worms in my body?"
Evelyn Ford stroked her hair. "Because you ate some canned food, and there were worms inside. When you ate it, the worms got into your body."
Wendy didn’t seem scared. Instead, she just nodded seriously.
"So I killed all the worms now, right?"
"That’s right. You’re so brave, Wendy."
Wendy gave a shy smile and threw herself into Evelyn Ford’s arms.
"The family of four next door to me... both of their children are gone. The couple went crazy, just crying and screaming in the hallway. The patrol came and took them away."
"On our floor, it’s just me and Owen Chapman now," Roy Henderson added. "Everyone else is dead."
"We lost someone on this floor, too," Officer Graham said. "A young guy, worked in the fishing crew." After he spoke, everyone fell silent.
"I saw someone getting carried away just now, covered in blood," Quincy said, pulling a can of food from his pocket. "I overheard some people talking. Apparently, there was an incident at the pig farm. Several pigs went berserk and mauled someone to death."
"There are worms in the water. The worms get into the pigs. The pigs go mad and kill people. The pigs become meat, which people eat. People get infected by the parasites, start vomiting blood, lose their minds, and then die."
Quincy looked at the group and asked softly, "So where do the dead go?"
"Dr. Miller in the medical department told me the base has a crematorium," Evelyn said. "After the dead are cremated, their ashes are taken to the ’cemetery,’ which is just a giant pit where they dump all the ashes."
Quincy shook his head, disagreeing with Evelyn’s account. "Or maybe there is no crematorium. Maybe there’s only the pit. The dead become fertilizer, seeping through the soil and into the groundwater."
Evelyn Ford pressed her temples. People were dying every day, hundreds of them. A crematorium wouldn’t be able to keep up. The answer to where the bodies went was obvious.
"This isn’t a base," Quincy said. "It’s an inferno."
Quincy glanced at the door and lowered his voice. "The base is sealed now. Locked down. No one can get out, and no one can get in. I heard a helicopter last night. I think whoever was in charge lost control and has already slipped away."
"Then what are we supposed to do?" Roy Henderson asked quietly from the corner.
Since arriving at the base, neither he nor Owen Chapman had found their families. Although they didn’t want to admit it, they knew in their hearts that they probably never would.
"No matter what, we have to keep living," Officer Graham said, holding Wendy and looking gravely at the others.
"There’s always a way out. We just have to survive."
’Is there always a way out?’ Evelyn Ford kept her head down, saying nothing.
