Chapter 9 Someone Watching
Kiara closed the door, the hostility in her eyes not yet gone.
Finished
From her last life, she knew exactly what kind of man Travis was–petty, vindictive, and quick to hold a grudge. They’d met three times in this life so far, and every meeting had ended badly. She had no doubt he hated her now.
That was fine. She could be patient. She’d wait.
Her fingers brushed the switchblade in her pocket before she walked back into the living room, softening the sharp edge in her expression.
She pulled a popsicle from the freezer and took slow, thoughtful licks.
After a moment, she wandered to the window, lifting the edge of a heavy curtain. Through the thick glass, the outside world shimmered with heat.
It was already past six in the evening, but the sun didn’t look like it intended to set anytime soon. Its glare bleached the building walls white.
Down below, the streets were empty. If not for the occasional sound of a baby crying somewhere nearby, she might have thought the place was a ghost town.
By eight, the sun had finally dulled, leaving only its heat to press against her skin
Kiara pulled a thermometer from her storage space, opened the window, and held it out.
110 F
Insanely hot, but compared to the 186 E she used to endure, it felt almost mild.
Others must have thought so too, because she soon spotted small groups forming in the neighborhood, apparently heading to the supermarket together.
She would rather not stand out, so she slipped on a hoodie, grabbed her car keys, and headed downstairs.
Kiara had enough supplies to last her a lifetime, but if she never left the house while everyone else went shopping, it would be obvious she was sitting on a stockpile.
And with Travis keeping an eye on her, she didn’t need to draw more attention.
Kiara blended in with the crowd, driving to a large shopping mall nearby.
Sure enough, the place was packed–busier than the week before Christmas.
She had no interest in fighting over the last packs of bottled water or sacks of rice. Instead, she headed straight for the snack aisle, tossing chips, bread, and soda into her cart until it was piled high
A young woman with a cant full of junk food didn’t attract much notice–at most, people might mutter that she was wasting her money.
After checking out, Kiara lugged the shopping bags to her car.
The moment she slid into the driver’s seat, she peeled off her hoodie, cranked the AC, and wiped the sweat from her neck
with a tissue.
A glance in the rearview mirror showed flushed skin against her naturally warm complexion.
It’s like an open out there!
She thought grimly
Suddenly, the alarm in her mind rang off.
Two months of relatively peaceful life had made her soft
How was she supposed to face the unpredictable extremes ahead if she was already wilting?
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Chapter 9 Someone Watching
Kiara reflected. She shouldn’t get used to a comfortable life.
Finished
This was only Day One of the apocalypse, and she was already complaining? What would she do about the long stretch still to
come?
Right then, she decided, every night, she’d switch off the AC and train in the gym for two hours, just to keep herself battle- ready for the rules of the apocalypse.
Rubbing her face hard with both hands, she turned off the car’s air conditioning.
The heat rushed back quickly, the cool air gone within minutes.
Pulling on an anti–smog mask, she rolled down the windows to let the air in.
The slow drive let hot gusts flood in from every direction. At first it felt unbearable, but little by little, her body adjusted.
She’d meant to head straight home, but on a whim, she steered into the city instead, curious to see whether this sudden heatwave had stirred up anything new.
Maybe people had gone crazy after staying at home during the day. Even in the sweltering night, plenty were out hunting for food and supplies.
The city still thrummed with life–if anything, it was livelier than usual.
Since she was already out, Kiara decided she might as well make it worthwhile.
She stopped by a jewelry store for a dozen gold bars, then withdrew 100,000 dollars in cash from the bank, leaving her account nearly empty.
By the time she returned home, her clothes were soaked through.
She couldn’t stand the sticky heat any longer and took a quick, no–nonsense shower, finally feeling human again.
Later, sprawled on her bed, she picked up her phone out of habit and scrolled through the news,
No
surprise–Joplor was still completely cut off from the outside world.
The sudden spike in extreme heat across the country, experts warned, could last a full week. Their advice: shut down work and production until it passed.
The next headline hit even harder–heatstroke fatalities. In just 24 hours, more than 500 people nationwide had died. And this was only Day One,
This time, the disasters were coming faster, harder, and more ruthlessly than in her last life.
Kiara exited the news app and opened WhatsApp instead.
The Skyhaven group chat was buzzing Dozens of residents were showing off photos of their grocery hauls–Joy, from the seventh floor, was especially active.
None of them knew that the more they flaunted their stock, the more likely they were to invite disaster into their house for the days ahead.
Finding nothing useful, Kiara set her phone aside, let soft music drift through the room, and soon fell asleep.
She woke the next morning drenched in heat.
Rolling over, she reached for the AC remote and clicked it a few times.
Nothing. No familiar beep. Her eyes opened fully.
Maybe the unit had broken? She reached over and flicked the bedside lamp.
Still nothing.
What the heck just happened?
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Chapter 9 Someone Watching
A power outage!
She grabbed her phone and checked WhatsApp. Sure enough, the Skyhaven chat was in an uproar.
JoyOfJoy complained, “Seriously? In this heat? Are they trying to kill us?”
Finished
Chaching typed, “This is supposed to be a luxury neighborhood! My grandson’s already been woken up twice from the heat Doesn’t property management care?
LuvNile added. “Heard it’s a short circuit. Shouldn’t take long to fix.
Property management replied. “Apologies, everyone. We’ve dispatched repair crews to fix the outage as quickly as possible. Please stay calm until the power comes back up. Sorry for the inconvenience.”
The property manager’s message calmed the group, and soon they were chatting about other things.
Kiara stopped reading.
She moved to the window and pulled back the curtain.
The sunlight was blindingly hot, and thick dust still blanketed the landscaping outside.
She picked up her thermometer and checked the temperature. 145 F
Her stomach tightened. Yesterday’s highest record had been 138 F
In just a single day, the temperature had jumped 8 F.
Without her previous life’s memories to use as a guide, she had no idea how far things could go this time.
But since the worst hadn’t arrived yet, she could only adapt.
Over the coming days, the heat broke records day after day.
Kiara stayed home, splitting her time between boxing practice, reading, and rewarding herself with good meals for keeping
active.
She had no idea that during those days she stayed in, someone had been watching her the entire time.
