Evelyn felt like she’d been drunk. By the end of the night, she had no idea what she was doing anymore. When she woke up the next day and saw Ronan Kendrick still sleeping soundly, Evelyn Ford rubbed her forehead as a flood of memories rushed into her mind. She covered her face, wishing she could just find a hole to crawl into.
Evelyn Ford was mortified to have worn Ronan Kendrick out like that.
As she snuck out of the log cabin, Ronan Kendrick watched her tiptoeing figure and slowly opened his eyes. He then pulled the blanket over his face, and a few seconds later, a muffled laugh came from underneath.
"Evelyn Ford, are you sick?" Quincy asked quizzically, yawning as he walked over to where Evelyn was stretching in an open area. He stared at her face.
"No, I’m not."
"Then why is your face so red? You must have a fever."
Evelyn Ford quickly waved her hand. "Definitely not. I’m perfectly fine."
"No need to get so worked up."
Evelyn Ford’s lips twitched guiltily. "I’m not worked up. I’m perfectly calm. Don’t bother me, go on."
"And you say you’re not worked up. So touchy," Quincy muttered. He pulled a handful of pumpkin seeds from his pocket, walked to the side, and started cracking them open.
The others gradually woke up. They hadn’t managed to chop much wood yesterday because of the black bear, so they needed to head out and gather more today.
"Has Ronan Kendrick left yet?" Ethan Dawson asked. He’d already sharpened his hatchet and, not seeing Ronan, assumed he had already gone out.
Evelyn Ford forced a laugh. "Ronan Kendrick isn’t out yet. I’ll go get him."
Ethan Dawson was a bit surprised. After all, Ronan Kendrick never slept in; this was a first.
"Is he hurt? Or just exhausted from taking down the black bear yesterday? Maybe we shouldn’t get him. Let him get a good rest today."
The others quickly agreed. Evelyn Ford thought for a moment and decided that Ronan Kendrick really should rest for the day.
"He is a bit tired. Thank you all for your hard work today."
Once the others had gone, Evelyn Ford quietly returned to the log cabin. The moment she opened the door, she saw Ronan Kendrick sitting up in bed, looking at her with a smile. The blanket was gathered at his waist, leaving a large expanse of his skin exposed. Evelyn coughed, walked over to quietly pull the blanket up for him, and then poured him a glass of water.
"Want something to eat?"
Ronan Kendrick raised an eyebrow. "Some ’grilled fish’?"
Evelyn Ford quickly clamped her hand over his mouth, stopping him from saying another word.
’From now on, ’grilled fish’ was a verb in her book, not a food.’
’Who was it that said last night that ’grilled fish’ had to be ’well-done on all sides’?’
Ronan Kendrick smiled, his breath warming Evelyn Ford’s palm. It felt hot and ticklish, and she glared at him in embarrassed anger.
"Get up and have breakfast. The others went to gather firewood, so you get some proper rest today."
"Alright," he replied, adopting a posture that said he was happy to let her fuss over him.
After breakfast, Ronan Kendrick got up anyway. When the others hauled the wood back, he and Officer Graham took axes and split the logs, stacking them behind the fire pit to dry out the damp wood.
There hadn’t been much wind outside for the past few days, so the group decided to gather more wood. Ever since the black bear’s appearance, everyone had grown restless. Even Ethan Dawson had started carrying his gun and ammunition at all times, ready to hunt.
But after three consecutive days of chopping wood, they hadn’t seen so much as bear scat, let alone a bear itself. They could only return disappointed.
"There’s not much wind outside now. We probably don’t need to keep the cave entrance sealed shut."
Ronan Kendrick disagreed. "We should keep it sealed at all times, except when we’re gathering firewood or collecting ice for water. With the biting winds gone from the mountains, the animals that were in hiding will start to come out."
"But isn’t it better if animals are out and about? That means we can go hunting."
The others were excited too. Ronan Kendrick’s effortless kill of the black bear had perhaps given them the false impression that hunting was easy. Shockingly, not a single one of them seemed to have any sense of the dangers of the wilderness.
Miles Vaughn weighed his words before speaking. "I think we could set some traps in the mountains. Actively hunting seems very dangerous to me. Setting traps would be relatively safer."
"Setting traps is just sitting around and waiting. Ronan Kendrick is so skilled, we don’t need to bother with them," Austin Moss argued, thinking traps were an unnecessary effort.
Others had different opinions as well. Evelyn Ford didn’t voice hers, merely sitting to one side with her eyes downcast.
"Everyone, listen to me." Officer Graham raised a hand to quiet them. He looked around at the group and said in a grave tone, "The weather out there is unpredictable. None of us knows if a fourth wave of cold air will hit. Anyone who wants to stay alive should just stay put in the cave. That black bear is enough to feed us for several months; there’s no need to go hunting again. Besides, hunting isn’t that easy. Without real skills, you could get yourself killed and end up dragging everyone else down with you. It’s always better to be safe than sorry."
After Officer Graham spoke, the rest of the group fell silent.
"I agree," Ethan Dawson said. "Forget a bear; even a wild boar could get one of us hurt. The quieter it is out there, the more careful we need to be. When things are this abnormal, it’s usually a bad sign. A bigger crisis might be on its way." After he spoke, Quincy raised his hand.
"I agree too."
That’s just how people are. After a few comfortable days, they start to forget that danger even exists.
This small disagreement revealed quite a lot.
That evening, just before they went to sleep, Officer Graham suddenly came over. He looked at Evelyn Ford and Ronan Kendrick, seeming to want to say something but holding back.
"Mr. Graham, please say what’s on your mind. Don’t worry about it."
Officer Graham looked troubled. "I’m not sure how to bring this up."
Seeing him like this, Evelyn Ford had a pretty good guess.
"Are you trying to ask about the group’s future—about people staying or leaving?"
Officer Graham gave an awkward smile. "It’s not that I’m paranoid, but I just feel that with this many people in our group, problems are bound to arise."
Evelyn Ford’s expression grew serious. "I know."
"Ronan and I have already talked about it. Once the cold air recedes, we’ll all go our separate ways."
Officer Graham looked to Ronan Kendrick, who nodded in confirmation.
"That’s for the best. Human nature is a very complex thing. In times like these, you have to be extra cautious."
"We know what we’re doing."
Having received his answer, Officer Graham let out a sigh of relief. His footsteps seemed much lighter as he walked away.
Evelyn Ford pulled out a calendar and glanced at it. In the blink of an eye, they had already been living in the cave for five months.
"Day and night blend together in this cave. If I didn’t have a pocket watch, I’d have no idea what day it was."
"Ronan Kendrick, do you think there will be a fourth wave of cold air?"
Ronan Kendrick nodded. "Most likely. And I agree with what Ethan Dawson said. It’s been too quiet outside these last few days, and that’s definitely not a good sign."
Evelyn Ford fell back onto the bed. "Whatever happens, happens. At least I can get into the Space now. I don’t have to be on pins and needles anymore."
"Oh, right! I’ve made some headway on the special medicine. I have a feeling it won’t be long before I can successfully replicate it."
Evelyn grew excited at the mention of this.
"This is a multi-billion-dollar project we’re talking about! If someone threw billions at me, I’d be crushed to a pulp."
’If those billions were converted to Gold...’
Seeing Evelyn Ford’s money-grubbing expression, Ronan Kendrick rested his forehead in his hand and chuckled softly.
Evelyn Ford still had three last doses of the special medicine in her possession. Barring any special circumstances, she wasn’t going to use them.