Chapter 20

Within less than an hour, Paulette had lost both of her parents. Screaming, she rushed over to try and grab a corner of her mother's clothes, but in the end, the only thing her fingertips could touch was the scalding night air. A second before Mrs. Chaoman hit the ground, Irene ran over and forcefully turned Paulette around, blocking her ears. "Don't look, Polly." It was too cruel for Paulette to watch her mother fall to her death in front of her. Paulette lay limp in Irene's arms, her whole body convulsing. She was in so much pain that she could not bring herself to cry. The room was silent. Irene had mixed feelings. She did not know what had happened to Paulette's parents in her previous life, but in this life, Irene was certain her talk of the apocalypse had something to do with their deaths. Irene was no god. She never could have known that something like this would happen to Paulette's parents. However, she did not take all the blame onto herself either. Irene quickly wiped away the negative emotions in her heart. When she looked up, her gaze was already clear. "Polly, the weather is getting hotter these days. Theor bodies won't last long in the heat. Let's find a place to bury them, okay?" She knew that Paulette was grieving right now, but the dead were gone, while the living still had to continue on. Irene did not allow herself to be consumed by grief, and she did not want Paulette to be paralyzed by what had happened. Paulette was a science student, and she was a rational person by nature. She knew very well that Irene was right. She forced down her sadness and said hoarsely, "Let's take them to Brightsong Village, my hometown. Two days ago, my father said that he would bring us back there to escape the heat." Her father had wanted to go back to his hometown more than once, but she and her mother had always stopped him. If they had just followed her father back to their hometown back then, he would still be with her right now. Tears began to well up in Paulette's eyes again as she thought about the past. When she heard the name Brightsong Village, Irene hesitated slightly. If she recalled correctly, Brightsong Village was the place where the riots first began. There was a prison there holding many violent criminals. Even during peacetime, the place was a hive of criminal activity. Still, when she saw Paulette's swollen, tear-stained eyes… Irene turned around decisively and bent down to pick up Mr. Chapman, whose body was already starting to stiffen. "Bring a photo of your parents with you… and grab a bucket." Mrs. Chapman had fallen from the thirty-second floor, so her body was definitely in pieces now. Paulette wiped the tears from her eyes and kept pace with Irene. It was nearly a three-hour drive from the city to Brightsong Village. By the time they arrived at the village, Paulette's parents' bodies were already starting to smell. Irene and Paulette found a relatively level clearing and began to dig. The two of them did not have any tools on hand, so they could only use a few wooden sticks they found at the last minute to start digging. There were a lot of farming supplies in Irene's space, but she could not find a chance to take them out. By the time they had carved out two equal-sized pits, another hour had passed. It was extremely hot now, and the sun rose very early. It was only four o'clock, but the sky was already turning bright. After a while, when the sun rose, the temperature would suddenly rise from 40 degrees to 70 degrees. By then, they should really head indoors. Paulette understood that, too. Despite her heartache and deep reluctance, she hastened to bury her parents. She fell to her knees and bowed three times before leaving with Irene. After leaving Brightsong Village, they passed by a series of narrow winding roads. Irene knew that the area was a lawless mess. On the way back, she was highly focused, afraid that something would go wrong on the way and someone would rob them at gunpoint. The moment a gunshot exploded behind her, Irene knew that her hopes of keeping a low profile had gone up in smoke. The shot hit the driver's-side glass, and Irene's ears pricked up. Looking into the rearview mirror, Irene saw someone lying in wait behind a tree not far behind her, raising a gun and firing at the Hummer. It looked like he did not expect to encounter bulletproof glass here. He aimed several more shots at the window before he could be sure. Irene hit the accelerator without hesitation. The man began firing like mad at her tires instead. Unfortunately for him, her tires are bulletproof too. Her smugness did not last long, though. The moment Irene let down her guard, Paulette gripped her arm tightly. "Nene, someone's blocking the way!" The warning came too late. The second Paulette finished speaking, their Hummer slammed into the rusty van in front of them, pushing it several meters away. These people had been targeting them for a while now. Irene looked around and saw that they were surrounded by trees. Rather than staying in the car like sitting doves, they had a higher chance of surviving in the forest. Irene and Paulette exchanged glances. They quickly opened the car door, jumped out, and ran into the woods. A flurry of footsteps followed quickly behind them. Irene grabbed Paulette's hand and used the terrain to run toward an oil press not far away. Earlier, when Paulette had said that she wanted to go to Brightsong Mountain, Irene did not stop her. There were two reasons for that. Firstly, she did not want to disappoint Paulette. Secondly, Irene had come to this place to collect supplies in her previous life, so she was quite familiar with the terrain. Having some buildings for cover would always be better than fighting for their lives on flat ground. The two of them ran to the oil mill desperately. Once there, they climbed over the fence and went straight into the factory building. Thanks to the heat wave, the oil mill was no longer running. There might still be people staying in the dormitory building nearby, but the chances of there being people in the factory area would be much lower. Moreover, the terrain of the factory area was more complicated, and there were all kinds of equipment to provide cover. Their pursuers would not be able to get at them so easily. As soon as they entered the factory area and found a corner to hide, the girls heard footsteps behind them. From the sound of their pursuers' voices, there were probably about ten people in the party. The men tightened their grip on their weapons and looked into the dark factory, spewing obscenities. "Hey, pretty ladies, why are you hiding? Come out and play with us." "I call dibs on the short one. The tall one is too tan and has short hair. She looks like a man. The short one is pretty, though, so she's mine." "…" For the first time, Irene wanted to curse out loud. He had the nerve to be picky with her? Someone retorted in an instant, "But I think that the taller one is better-looking. Her body's more attractive, y'know." The men did not hold back with their dirty talk as they searched the factory. Waiting would not get them anywhere. What Irene had to do now was take the initiative. She picked up a block of hardened oil and threw it at the opposite corner of the wall. Someone detected the slight noise immediately, and they hurried in that direction. Meanwhile, Irene took the opportunity to grab some more oil dregs and threw them in yet another direction. The men exchanged glances and walked in pairs in the direction of the sound. Irene leaned close to Paulette's ear and whispered, "Hide here." She stuffed a Swiss army knife into Paulette's hand and dragged a sack of oil dregs over hide her. After that, Irene did a forward roll in the direction of the two men closest to them. Since they had their backs to her, Irene did not show any mercy. She raised the knife and stabbed them hard in the aorta. Next, she finished off another two of their accomplices in the same way. When these two fell, one of them knocked over the metal equipment, making a loud clang. The other six men heard the sound and rushed over at the same time. Irene's plan to deal with the rest of them quietly had fallen through. She wondered what her chances of winning would be if they attacked her at the same time. These people were obviously trained fighters, and they were armed to boot. No matter how she cut it, her chances of winning were not high. Footsteps closed in on her from all sides, and Irene darted around the giant oil press in a crouch. Suddenly, someone covered her mouth. She looked up and saw that the black muzzle was already aimed at her temple. At the same time, gunshots suddenly rang out—