Chapter 2

"Oh..." She obviously wasn't convinced, but she couldn't pry any more. "We'll chat later. I need to get started on lunch."

I closed the door and bolted it right away, leaning against it while I caught my breath. Time to speed up those safe house upgrades. The neighbors who coveted my supplies last time? They wouldn't even get close this go-around.

That afternoon, I got in touch with three separate security companies: one to reinforce the doors and windows, another to set up surveillance, and the third to revamp the ventilation. I spaced out their work times on purpose to avoid drawing too much attention.

As the workers were installing the bulletproof glass, the security chief, Houston Hall, wandered over.

"Ms. Carney, what's all this big construction about?" He squinted, eyeing the steel frames and explosion-resistant materials. "The building has regulations—any changes like this need to be filed with management."

I had the documents ready. "Mr. Hall, here's the permit from property management. We had a break-in recently, so I'm just beefing up security."

He pretended to scan the papers, but his eyes kept drifting inside. In my previous life, this very Houston had rounded up his team to raid my stash and even attempted to...

"Got it." He passed the files back with a greasy smile. "Still, Ms. Carney, gear this high-end has gotta cost a fortune, right?"

"It's manageable—safety's the priority." I acted like I missed his probing. "By the way, Mr. Hall, have the stray cats and dogs in the neighborhood thinned out lately? The ones I feed regularly are gone."

His face stiffened. "Uh... maybe animal control rounded them up. If that's all, Ms. Carney, I'll get back to patrolling."

I watched him scurry away and frowned. In my previous life, the animals around here had begun vanishing mysteriously a week before the zombies hit—and Houston's reaction made it clear he was in on something.

Once the door was shut, I added a new entry to my list: Look into the missing animals.

As night fell, I stood on the balcony, staring out at the quiet complex, my fingers absentmindedly rubbing my left wrist—free of that ugly zombie bite scar for now.

*****

This time, I'd watch those hypocritical, cruel bastards reap what they'd sown, one by one.

I stood in the center of the living room, observing as the crew fitted the last piece of bulletproof glass. Sunlight streamed through the seemingly normal pane—strong enough to stop rifle bullets—and scattered diamond patterns across the floor.

"Ms. Carney, we've finished reinforcing all the doors and windows." The security company's foreman, Milo Cantu, wiped the sweat from his forehead as he approached. "As per your specs, every entry point has triple protection layers, and it all looks completely ordinary from outside."

I nodded and handed him a bottle of iced water. "How's the ventilation coming along?"

"It's being installed as we speak." He leaned closer, dropping his voice. "That air filtration unit you specified was a real challenge to track down, but we've handled similar ones for clients with military ties."

A faint smile crept onto my face. In my previous life, three weeks after the zombie virus erupted, a mutated airborne strain infected everyone in the building who hadn't prepared. Not this time—I refused to make the same error.

"The surveillance system includes both overt and covert elements." Milo gestured to a couple of conspicuous cameras on the wall. "These are decoys for anyone watching. The ones that really count are here—" He whipped out his phone, opened an app, and the display filled with live feeds from all over the apartment, including the outer hallway and elevator.

"Excellent." I grabbed the phone to check the image clarity. "What if someone tampers with the visible cameras...?"

"The hidden network will automatically back up to the cloud, and you'll get immediate notifications on your phone and this tablet." Milo passed me a toughened tablet. "We've also configured the power setup with backups as requested—solar panels and batteries that can sustain essential functions for two months."

I was just about to reply when the doorbell rang. Glancing at the new peephole screen, I saw a face that made my stomach churn with grim recognition: Maribel, my so-called "dear" cousin.

"Ms. Carney, seems like you have a visitor? We'll wrap things up and get out of your hair." Milo tactfully signaled the team to collect their gear.

I drew a deep breath, stashed the tablet in a drawer, composed myself, and opened the door.

"Rhea!" The moment she spotted me, Maribel dove in for a hug. I sidestepped neatly, leaving her to grasp at thin air, but she recovered without a hint of awkwardness. "I was passing by, noticed the work going on, and figured I'd drop in to check on you."

I eyed her impeccably made-up features—smooth long black hair, big doe eyes full of feigned innocence, a pink dress that screamed naive college girl. Who could guess at the venomous heart hidden beneath that sweet facade?

"Come in, but heads up—the place is a total mess." I moved aside to let her pass, catching Milo's meaningful look out of the corner of my eye as he departed. Cash could secure silence, but it was rarely foolproof; I'd need to tack on a bonus for discretion tomorrow.

Maribel wandered through the living room, trailing her fingers across the newly installed blast-resistant glass. "Rhea, what's all this about? You fortifying this place like a bank vault?"