Magic Space: Struggling to Survive in the Apocalypse-Chapter 68: Leaving 3

Three hours passed quickly, and the convoy set off again.

By the time the sun was fully up, the long procession of refugees had begun to move slowly.

"Why have we stopped again?"

They had been on the road for less than an hour before the convoy halted once more. At this stop-and-go pace, when would they ever reach the base? Someone in the car behind them couldn’t help but complain, but they fell silent when they saw the burly men who collected the protection fees approaching.

"Two people from each vehicle to the front to clear the road. There’s been a landslide. Move it! If you don’t send people, you hand over half a pound of grain."

"Quincy and I will go. Mr. Graham, you should stay here." Evelyn Ford volunteered. Quincy had no objections and got out, grabbing a shovel from the car. Roy Henderson and Owen Chapman wanted to go too, but Officer Graham stopped them.

"Evelyn’s plan is sound. If you two kids go, it could be a one-way trip. The supplies in the car are too important. We’ll guard the vehicle."

Having spent so much time together, they had developed an unspoken understanding.

Evelyn Ford and Quincy walked to the front of the convoy. Looking at the mounds of earth and massive boulders blocking the path, they felt a surge of complicated emotions.

More people trickled in from the other vehicles, muttering complaints under their breath but not daring to just walk away from the task.

"Get to work! This needs to be cleared in two hours!"

Evelyn Ford glanced at the burly man shouting orders, her gaze inadvertently drifting to the vehicles behind him. An SUV led the way, followed by a large RV, with three more SUVs bringing up the rear. As she had walked past, she’d seen several people inside the RV playing cards. They were dressed in clean clothes, and the bodyguards standing watch outside had guns tucked into their waistbands. Anyone who so much as glanced inside would be cursed out.

"What are you looking at?" Quincy asked in a low voice.

"Nothing." Evelyn Ford started working. Quincy glanced back at the vehicles, then said no more.

Two hours later, the road was clear. Quincy had a fresh blister on his palm. The burly man ordered everyone back to their vehicles, shouting that the convoy was about to depart. People broke into a jog to return to their cars. Evelyn Ford was supposed to drive this leg of the journey, but since she had just finished the hard labor, Officer Graham took the wheel instead.

Back in the car, the two were too exhausted to speak. After a gulp of water, Evelyn Ford watched the convoy start moving again, feeling drowsy.

"Quincy, was what you said true?"

"Of course. The people in those five vehicles up front are all rich, and they have bodyguards. These guys collecting protection fees are just their lackeys. You two be careful and stay away from those cars."

Roy Henderson and Owen Chapman nodded quickly.

"It must be nice to be rich and powerful. Even in the apocalypse, they’re still living in style," Quincy lamented.

"Are you regretting turning down that rich older woman again?"

"Mr. Graham, I never thought you’d tease me too! But you’re right. I regret it so much. Once, a golden opportunity to get rich overnight was laid before me, but I failed to cherish it. If the heavens gave me a chance to do it all over again, I would grab that rich woman’s hand and tell her: I do."

"HAHAHAHA..."

Everyone burst into laughter. Even Wendy was hiding in the corner, giggling to herself.

Watching the sun climb higher in the sky, Evelyn Ford felt the corners of her lips twitch into a smile.

At ten o’clock, the convoy stopped again. There was another problem with the road ahead. This time, Officer Graham went to help clear it by himself. Wendy stayed in the car under Evelyn Ford’s watch, while the others went out to forage for wild vegetables.

Quincy got lucky and caught a giant rat. But because of that rat, a life was nearly lost.

When Quincy, Roy Henderson, and Owen Chapman returned, all three were covered in blood and injuries. The moment Evelyn Ford saw the giant rat in Quincy’s hands, she knew what had happened.

"I was going to let it slide, you know, not pick a fight with those bandits. But then some damn fool of a woman showed up and tried to guilt-trip me, telling me I had to give my rat to the old folks and kids. Look, if I don’t catch anything, that’s my problem. But I caught this, so it’s mine! Why the hell should I hand it over? I barely retorted before a few guys jumped me. Roy and Owen got beaten up helping me, but we gave as good as we got. We knocked out a few of their teeth."

Wendy quickly pulled a few wild greens from her small pouch and offered them. Quincy winced in pain as he gently ruffled her hair.

"Thanks, Wendy, but Uncle can’t eat right now."

Evelyn Ford dug three painkillers out of her bag and handed them over. She moved Wendy aside and started bandaging their wounds.

"This road is a disaster. We have to stop and clear it several times a day. The people on foot are going to catch up to us soon. Oh, by the way, there was a guy on a motorcycle earlier... what a tragedy. He went to forage for vegetables, and when he came back, his bike had been stripped. The tires and gas were all gone."

Evelyn Ford nodded. "No wonder I heard someone wailing behind us earlier."

"Life is hard enough as it is. If people can’t help each other, can they at least not do such rotten things to hurt others?"

"When life is this hard, who has the energy to care about anyone else? People are selfish. Everyone wants to survive. You can only say the guy who got robbed was unlucky."

However, this theft wasn’t an isolated incident. Things like this happened every day.

People stole grain, clothes, gasoline... if you weren’t careful for even a moment, all your belongings could disappear.

With such a long convoy and so many people, all you could do in these times was swallow your bitter pills. There was no sense or reason to be found.

After days of eating nothing but wild vegetable patties, Evelyn Ford’s stomach was in knots. During the next rest stop, she used foraging as an excuse to walk a little farther away, then took two steamed buns from her space and wolfed them down.

But the worst suffering wasn’t the vegetable patties or using the great outdoors as a toilet. It was getting her period.

The others could tell she wasn’t feeling well and tried to make her rest more, but Evelyn Ford didn’t want to take advantage. After one day of rest, she refused to lie down any longer.

She took two painkillers, drove the car, and cleared roadblocks. By the end of the day, the pain seemed to have lessened significantly.

But the sticky, damp feeling was unbearable. Evelyn Ford could even smell the blood on herself; she couldn’t believe others couldn’t smell it too.

"Evelyn, I have a couple of relatively clean clothes."

Quincy leaned close to Evelyn Ford and whispered. For a moment, she didn’t understand.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean... my clothes are clean. You could cut them up to use as padding. It might make you more comfortable."

A warmth spread through Evelyn Ford’s heart.

"I have sanitary pads. You don’t need to worry."

Hearing her say those two words so calmly, a flicker of awkwardness crossed Quincy’s grimy face.

"Oh, good. You’re my sister from another mister, after all. If you’re ever in a bind, just tell me. I’ll help you figure it out."

Evelyn Ford suddenly raised a hand and slapped him on the shoulder, making Quincy wince in pain.

"You’ve got a strong arm! Are you trying to kill me?"

Evelyn Ford laughed awkwardly. "Sorry. I just wanted to say thank you."

"You don’t have to hit me to say thanks. I may be a man, but I’m very delicate."

Evelyn... ’Get lost.’