But it had only been a few hours, and her mother had ended up like this.
Yana Larkin couldnât believe that the person before herâface twisted in agony, hair a tangled, blood-stained messâcould possibly be the same mother who was always so impeccably put-together.
âItâs not real. None of this is real. It has to be a nightmare. Once I wake up, everything will be normal againââ
"You two, try not to be too heartbroken. Bury your mother, then go back and try to live on. The worldâs different now. The law canât protect us anymore. From now on, you have to be careful!"
Uncle Lawrence walked over to the two of them, patting Woody Larkinâs back as he tried to comfort them.
Yana Larkin cradled Ms. Larkinâs body, sobbing as she tried to wipe away the blood, completely unresponsive to Uncle Lawrenceâs words.
Uncle Lawrence sighed. There was nothing he could do. In the past, he could have called the police for the siblings, but that was useless now. The perpetrators knew it, too, which was why they could act with such impunity.
âHeâd heard that someone in Building A had killed a person, and nothing had happened to them. No police came to investigate. Everyone probably knew by now.â
âThis really is the apocalypse!â
He was about to turn and leave when the silent Woody Larkin suddenly shouted, "Uncle Lawrence!"
The voice was filled with furious rage. Startled, Uncle Lawrence turned back to see Woody Larkinâs bruised face full of hatred, his bloodshot eyes glaring at him.
Uncle Lawrence was so scared he stumbled back two steps, then clutched at his chest. "You scared me to death, kid! I didnât kill your mother! It had nothing to do with me!"
That look in the boyâs eyes... anyone who didnât know better would think Woody was about to try and kill him. He rushed to explain.
"It was them, wasnât it? The animals who broke into our house, they did it, right? They killed my mom, didnât they?"
Woody Larkin growled, his body trembling violentlyâtrembling with rage.
âWhy would those people break into our house for no reason? There must be a reason.â
âAnd Mom was murdered!â
âIt must have been the same group of people. They killed Mom, and then they robbed our house.â
âActually, he had already guessed most of it, but he was unwilling to admit it. He needed to find out the truth. He wanted revenge.â
Uncle Lawrenceâs eyes flickered. He didnât want to offend those people, nor did he want to say anything more.
But for some reason, under the pressure of the boyâs intense gaze, he felt a jolt of fear. In the end, he quietly gave a brief summary of what had happened.
After he finished, he patted Woody Larkinâs shoulder again. "Thereâs no point in pursuing this now. Whatâs done is done. You two need to live on. If you run into any real trouble... youâll just have to rely on yourselves!"
In the end, he just couldnât bring himself to say the words, "If you have any trouble, come find me."
âRight now, I can barely protect myself. How could I possibly help anyone else?â
After hearing this, Woody Larkinâs body trembled even more violently. Not from the cold, nor from fear. From hatred.
He was shaking so hard that he collapsed weakly to his knees. Uncle Lawrence started to help him up but was frightened off by the look on his face.
He took two steps back, shot a look at Woody Larkin, then glanced at Yana Larkin, who still refused to accept reality. With a sigh, he left them to it and turned to leave.
"Why?! They killed someone! They should pay with their lives! They deserve to die!"
âWhat did Mom do wrong to be killed by those people?â
THUMPâ
He slammed his fist into the snow, his eyes bloodshot. He didnât know why the world had suddenly changed like this. All he knew was that he was filled with hate... so much hate!
"Iâm going to kill them!"
He roared as he got to his feet and staggered forward. Yana Larkin snapped out of her daze and quickly grabbed him. "Get a grip! Revenge? How are you going to get revenge? There are so many of them!"
She just hadnât wanted to believe it, but she had heard every word clearly. She hated them too, but she also understood that the two of them could do nothing on their own.
"They deserve to die! Iâll take down one of them, then anotherâIâll kill as many as I can!"
"You canât even kill one of them right now! Brother, calm down! We have to survive! If something happens to you too, what am I supposed to do all by myself?!"
Yana Larkin cried, holding him tightly to stop him. At this moment, she had to stay rational. Nothing could happen to her brother!
"So we just let them get away with it?!"
"First, we survive. As long as weâre alive, thereâs always a chance," Yana Larkin murmured.
Woody Larkin let out a cry of rage before collapsing weakly to the ground, sobbing.
After a while, Yana Larkin composed herself, called to her brother, and prepared to bury their mother.
âI have to accept it, even if I donât want to. Itâs so cold out here. Our bodies wonât be able to take it if we stay any longer.â
âOur bodies canât afford to break down now. Itâs hard enough to survive in this new world, let alone get revenge on those people later.â
"So, itâs them."
On the 28th floor, Stella Sterling held a pair of binoculars, getting a clear view of the siblings.
She had taken a short afternoon nap and had just woken up to a commotion downstairs, so she came over to take a look.
The more she watched, the more familiar the siblings looked. After a moment, she finally remembered why: she had met them in her previous life.
In the sixth year of the apocalypse, she had crossed paths with them while fighting over a supply cache. At the time, the brother was a minor leader in some small faction, and the sister was rumored to be the faction leaderâs lover.
Their goals had been different, so she never had a direct conflict with them.
But they had still left an impression on her.
âThat woman was vicious and ruthless when she schemed; every one of her plans was a venomous plot.â
âAnd the boy was a skilled fighter who acted with a fierce resolve. He was a handful.â
âThey look like their younger selves from six years ago. No wonder I didnât recognize them at first.â
âTo think theyâre in the same residential complex as me.â
Suddenly, her eyes narrowed.
Below, the siblings were digging in the snow, trying to bury Ms. Larkin, when three men approached them. It started with taunts, but then they started getting physical. One man, with a greasy smile, reached out to touch Yana Larkin but was shoved away by Woody Larkin.
But the next moment, another man punched Woody to the ground. Two of them pinned him down, immobilizing him.
The first man started groping Yana Larkin again. She struggled, but what was a young womanâs strength against that of a grown man?
The same went for Woody Larkin. He was already injured, and now two grown men were holding him down. All he could do was roar at them, unable to break free.
Watching this scene unfold, Stella Sterlingâs eyes narrowed. Her fingers tapped unconsciously against the glass window. Then, she turned aroundâ
âI have to save them!â