Chapter 4
1670 Words
Eric pulled out the supply list he'd made along the way, and Sofia froze in her chair, speechless.
Eric didn't seem concerned. He knew Sofia had taken the bait and wouldn't be able to resist any of his requests now. It was only a matter of time before she agreed and carried them out.
After a moment, Sofia suddenly grew uneasy. She glanced around nervously, then leaned in and lowered her voice. "Honey, is it safe to talk about our family matters so openly?"
Eric scoffed internally but smiled as he took a sip of his coffee. "We don't need to care."
At those words, Sofia trembled, her eyebrows shooting up as a triumphant grin spread across her face.
She thought that she'd really landed a rich guy, and this procurement task alone was going to be a huge payday.
"But Sofia," Eric said, his expression turning apologetic, "my aunt is having some cash flow issues and can only provide three-tenths of the procurement funds. For the remaining seven-tenths, could you..."
"Huh?" Sofia's ecstatic expression disappeared.
Eric immediately looked disappointed. "Sofia, are you hesitating? I didn't expect..."
Sofia's expression shifted several times before settling into determination. "It's okay! I can front the money!"
"What's mine is yours, and what's yours is mine. Supporting each other is no big deal, right, honey?" she said, looking at Eric adoringly.
"Absolutely," Eric nodded in satisfaction. "Sofia, I knew I was right about you. You're someone I want to spend the rest of my life with."
"Wonderful!" Sofia threw herself into Eric's arms, making him inwardly recoil. A few seconds later, he subtly pushed the tearful Sofia away.
"Right, Sofia, my aunt has entrusted me with a lot of other things, so let's not chat anymore. You should go ahead and start the procurement. Once this is all over, we'll have a proper honeymoon, just the two of us."
***
After sending Sofia off, Eric strolled down the street, thinking about his next move.
'It was pretty clever of me to come up with the idea of having Sofia handle all this shopping for me, and even front the money herself. It saves me valuable time and cash.'
'I don't have to worry about setting up the safe house either. I met a bunch of rich people back when I was writing screenplays. I'll just ask them for contacts at security companies.'
'The only tricky part is getting the weapons and ammo. After I was framed, my gun was revoked. I can't think of anyone reliable right now who'd be willing to risk committing a crime to help me stockpile weapons.'
'What am I going to do?'
"What are you going to do?" A woman's angry voice suddenly snapped Eric out of his thoughts.
At a nearby street corner, a scruffy-looking man was standing shivering in front of a provocatively dressed woman, clutching her hand and refusing to let go.
"Cecilia, please don't leave me..."
"Didn't you promise to give me security and a comfortable life?"
"Yeah, and I've spent a lot of money on you..."
"That was before. Now you only have a dead-end job and can't give me anything."
"I'll work hard. Can you please not break up with me? Think about what we have, please."
"How can you be so selfish? You can't provide a comfortable life, and now you're trying to guilt-trip me with our feelings."
"I'm sorry, I made you angry again..."
Eric hadn't meant to eavesdrop on this ordinary argument, but the more he looked at the man's face, the more familiar it seemed.
Then it hit him—wasn't this Cormac Jones, the infamous survivor from his past life?
In the apocalypse, people's survival situations had varied. There were pitiful people like Eric, huddled at home desperately waiting for rescue, and there were survivor groups who dared to take the initiative to fight zombies and scavenge for supplies.
Cormac had been the top enforcer of one such group.
According to other survivors, Cormac was a remarkably skilled veteran who had killed dozens of zombies and was fiercely loyal to the group's leader. His loyalty stemmed from a miserable life before the apocalypse. He had been used and dumped by a gold digger, and the leader had rescued him from that despair.
And now, it seemed, this was Cormac's lowest point.
Under the setting sun, the woman mercilessly flung Cormac's hand away, kicked him in the shoulder, knocking him to the ground, and walked off without looking back, her face filled with disgust.
Cormac just lay there, stunned, oblivious to the passing pedestrians. After a long while, he wiped his eyes, silently got up, and stumbled away.
Something stirred in Eric. He began discreetly following the dejected Cormac, eventually arriving at the opening of an abandoned bridge underpass.
Shoes, liquor bottles, some personal belongings, and trash were scattered inside the underpass. It appeared to be where Cormac lived.
Cormac walked into the dark underpass, picked up a bottle of liquor, and was about to take a swig when he realized it was empty. Fatigue washed over him like a tidal wave. He lay down, closed his eyes, and began to replay his failed life.
In college, driven by a childhood dream and the desire for a decent career, he had joined the army. But army life had been nothing like he had imagined. Not only had there been bullying and oppression, but he had also been forced to carry out many unjust military missions.
Suffering immensely, he had left the army early with severe psychological trauma and a severance package.
Meeting Cecilia had felt like his salvation. He still remembered how good she had been to him at first. But even that opportunity he had failed to grasp, unable to provide the life she wanted.
'Why am I so useless? What's even the point of my existence?'
Half-asleep, Cormac suddenly felt someone touching him.
He groggily opened his eyes. It was a stranger, carefully wiping the shoe print Cecilia had left on his shoulder. "Who are you? What are you doing here?"
Eric smiled at him. "I'm here to help you. And by the way, Cecilia is just a gold digger. You shouldn't be so down in the dumps over her."
Cormac jumped to his feet, pointing at Eric. "Who the h*ll are you? Are you insane? What gives you the right to talk about my relationship with Cecilia? She's not a gold digger!"
Even in his disheveled state, Cormac was still intimidating. Eric quickly added, "Relax, bro. I'm not trying to mess with you. I have proof. I'm not here to cause trouble. I just saw you suffering on the street, and it didn't sit right with me. If she loved you, why would she dump you so heartlessly? Tell me where she is. I'm confident I can get you evidence, okay?"
The words "dump you so heartlessly" hit a nerve with Cormac, and he deflated. "When she's stressed, she likes to hang out at bars on the west side, but I don't go to places like that. I've never been. You could try looking for her there," he said weakly.
An hour later, Eric found Cecilia in a small bar on the west side.
It was completely dark outside, but the bar was brightly lit. Cecilia moved through the boisterous crowd like a shimmering butterfly, seemingly unbothered by the recent breakup.
Eric entered the bar with a grim expression that softened as he approached Cecilia.
"Hey, beautiful," he said casually, twisting his wrist to show off his Rolex. "Got time to do me a favor? It pays well."
Seeing a man of means approach, Cecilia stopped and leaned in with a smile. "Hey there, handsome. What's the favor?"
Eric winked. "Help me humiliate your ex, Cormac. We've got some bad blood from our time in the army, you know."
Half an hour later, Eric and Cecilia returned to the bridge underpass. Cecilia headed straight for Cormac as soon as she got out of the car, with Eric following close behind.
"Cecilia, what are you doing here...?" Cormac started to get up excitedly, but Cecilia cut him off. "I'm here to tell you the real reason we broke up, Cormac."
"Huh? Wasn't it because I didn't live up to your expectations?"
The clicking of Cecilia's high heels, which she had worn to the bar, echoed under the bridge. "Not at all. Actually, from the very beginning, all I wanted was your severance pay."
Cormac was stunned.
"Did you think I was into you? Don't be ridiculous. Did you honestly believe I was attracted to you, a man with trauma and without any other skills? I was only nice to you at first because guys are s*ckers for first impressions. I made sure to leave a good one, and then I used it to take advantage of you and toss you aside. That was my plan all along."
Cecilia's words hit Cormac like needles piercing his skin. He clutched his head, shaking it in agony. "No, Cecilia, I don't believe you!"
"Are you being threatened by the guy next to you? If you are, just tell me. I can protect you!"
Cecilia spat in disgust. "Don't be delusional. Who needs your protection? Eric is rich and powerful. I'm with him willingly! To tell you the truth, coming here to confess to you was just a task Eric gave me. There's a reward for completing Eric's tasks, and compared to his reward, your pathetic feelings mean nothing."
"Right, Eric?"
"You bet," Eric replied casually.
Seeing Cormac on the verge of collapse, Cecilia turned triumphantly, reaching out to loop her arm around Eric's and lean against him, hoping to crush Cormac completely with their display of intimacy.
But before she could, Eric grabbed her outstretched wrist in a vice-like grip.
Cecilia cried out in pain and looked up instinctively, meeting Eric's amused gaze and raised hand.
Panic flared in her eyes. "Eric, what are you doing?"
Eric grinned. "Rewarding you."
- Writer
