جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 130

Zeph probably had deep psychological trauma from last time. His body froze for just a split second, and that was all Nicole needed. She flipped him straight onto the mat.She pinned one of his long legs down and twisted his arm behind his back, locking him in place.Their bodies tangled together, but Nicole clearly had the upper hand.Zeph let out a helpless laugh. For once, he didn't counter with anything brutal. "Not bad. Guess you can even take down your own teacher now."Nicole immediately let go and got up, a little embarrassed. "Sorry. Didn't mean to scare you."She had gotten carried away and pulled a dirty move again. It wasn't exactly something to be proud of.They kept sparring. Two hours later, both of them were drenched in sweat.Nicole's face was flushed, her breathing uneven, her whole body soaked and aching in the best way possible.Poppy came back, hugging her doll, clearly starving. "I'm hungry. What are we having tonight?"Zeph glanced at Nicole.Nicole paus

Jeremy snapped at Nicole, but she just smiled without arguing.If she really had a jinx like that, she would rather the deep freeze never come at all.She kept an eye on Zeph. He was calm and unreadable as always, no hint of emotion on his face.Cola, on the other hand, was restless. Even after four hours of training, the dog couldn't settle down. He kept letting out low, uneasy whines every now and then.Nicole had no idea when the cold would hit, and the sense of unease wouldn't leave her. She pulled out electric blankets, down comforters, and thick quilts in advance, stacking them within reach.That night, she deliberately changed into her temperature-regulating clothes before bed.After a full day of intense training, her body was drained. She had meant to stay up a bit longer, but sleep hit her hard, dragging her under before she even realized it.She didn't know how long she had been out when Cola's frantic barking snapped her awake. The walkie-talkie crackled with static.

Nicole wasn't the only one with an electric blanket. Cola got one, too.She picked a smaller one, spread it over the beanbag chair, and hooked it up to the battery pack. At the same time, she turned on both space heaters.The temperature in the room climbed fast.Ash and Snowy felt the warmth almost immediately. They scrambled out of the foam box and hopped onto the beanbag, trying to squeeze in next to Cola.For once, the dog didn't fight them off. He let them shove in close, bodies pressed together, sharing heat.Nicole checked the foam box again. Two of the adult rabbits had already died.They were probably scared to death.The others didn't look much better, sluggish and weak. Strangely enough, the newborn kits were fine, too young to even understand what was happening.Ash and Snowy had clearly been toughened up by Cola. Their nerves were stronger now, and with their thick fur and the extra layers Nicole had put on them, they hadn't panicked.They just weren't taking care

It was Oliver again. This time, he had a few other men with him.Nicole didn't respond.Oliver kept knocking, muttering to the others beside him."Oliver, it's dead quiet up here. Do you think something happened to them last night?"The man's voice was hoarse; he was clearly sick from the cold.If something had happened to the people on the 18th floor, that would be perfect.That was what Oliver was really thinking, though he kept it to himself. Out loud, Oliver sighed like a decent person. "Don't say that. Nicole and the others are young and in good shape. They'll be fine. And even if something did happen, we should help out.""Come on, Oliver. You're too nice. Haven't you seen how they treat us?""We're all in the same building. Looking out for each other is the right thing to do.""Wait, I think I hear something. Guess they're not dead after all."There was a trace of disappointment in his voice. If the entire 18th floor had been wiped out, all those supplies would've be

Nicole had slept too much during the day, so that night, she was wide awake, going through everything in her storage space again.The peppers, eggplants, and cucumbers in the garden had already been harvested. The old grapevine had grown thick clusters, the fruit shifting from green to a deep reddish-purple.Another month or so, and they would be ready.The first year had only produced ten clusters in total. Once they ripened, she would harvest maybe 50 pounds at most.On a whim, and not wanting to step inside her storage and waste time, she tried reaching out with her mind.She didn't expect anything. She had never managed to pull something directly from the soil before.But the next second, a grape appeared in her hand.Nicole froze. Then, the excitement hit.She immediately tried again, this time pulling at some leafy greens.It worked! She managed to yank out a few bunches.Still, the effort drained her fast. Her head spun, her vision blurring.If she could harvest with