Chapter 296 Burn the Bridge
Chapter 296 Burn the Bridge
Malik’s gaze swept across the room like a de. “Anyone staying with me?”
The ce went dead quiet. Nobody wanted to move first. They all just stared at each other, waiting for someone else to make the call.
Then<b>, </b>a man pushed his way to the front. “Malik, I’m with you. Always was<b>.” </b>
Another one snorted. “Told you from the start–women can’t lead. About time
you
woke up.”
A third one spat at the floor. “Those people downstairs? They’ll throw you in front of the horde and <b>call </b>it strategy. I’m not following them to my death.”
One by one, more of them joined him. Thirteen… maybe fourteen in total.
Eva didn’t even need to count. They were Malik’s men—the real muscle of Ridgefall Camp. They were never hers. Malik had kept them in line, not her.
Now that he’d turned on her, there was no chance in hell they’d stay.
Malik gave a sharp, humorlessugh. “Good. Split the supplies. Most of it came from us anyway. You’re not taking a d*mn thing that belongs to us.”
Eva’s hands curled into fists, but she didn’t say a word.
In the beginning, everything had been pulled from the Ridgefall Mall. It was hers, technically. That didn’t matter anymore. Those days were gone. Her stash had been eaten through months ago. The only food left came from Malik’s raids.
After the split, her side was left with next to nothing.
Malik didn’t stop there. He grabbed the so–called “apology gift” Theresa sent for Mario–100 pounds of rice and ten boxes of instant noodles.
Everyst pack of instant noodles–fifty in total–got dumped into boiling pots. Over 100 people wed for scraps, slurping up noodles and licking the bowls clean. Even crumbs off the floor didn’t stand a chance.
The 100 pounds of rice? Malik hauled all of it away as if it were his brother’s grave goods. Not a single grain was leaving with Eva’s group.
Eva almost stepped in.
Her hand twitched… then dropped<i>/</i>What’s <i>the </i>point? <i>He </i>won’t <i>listen</i>, <i>not </i><i>anymore</i>.
Malik’s voice cut through the air again. “Since we’re splitting, you’re done here. This ce is ours now<b>. </b>Everyst inch of it.”
“Mr. Stark, that’s insane!” Ray snapped, his face flushed with anger. “This camp belongs to <b>Ms. </b>Hunter<b>!</b>”
“Insane?” Malik sneered, mes flickering in his palm. “You want fair? I’ll show
you
<b>fair</b><b>.</b><b>” </b>
<b>1/3 </b>
<b>15:11 </b>Sat, <b>16 </b><b>Aug </b>
Chapter 296 Burn the Bridge
Eva raised her hand. “Enough. We’re leaving.
Her eyes stayed on Malik for a moment, sharp at first… then they dulled, settling into that cold, <b>steady </b>kind of calm that onlyes when there’s nothing left to fight for.
She didn’t spare him another nce. She turned and led her people out–no hesitation, no protest–<b>just </b>quiet footsteps.
Malik stayed rooted there, the mes in his palm ring like they shared his fury. As soon as Eva’s shadow disappeared, he turned and mmed the fireball into the stash of food.
“Mr. Stark! Are you out of your d’mn mind?!” one of his men shouted. “You’re burning what we’ve got left<b>! </b>
They rushed to stomp out the mes, but Malik didn’t care. He marched into the office and wrecked everything in sight.
“D*mn it!” His roar rattled the walls. “D*mn it! D*mn it!”
He smashed a chair, breathing like he’d run a mile.
“You never cared! Not once! You hear me, Eva? You never gave a d*mn!”
The words echoed back at him, raw and jagged, like they were cutting his own throat.
Downstairs, Theresa had just finished herte–night ration and finalized the storm team’s formation when she saw movement by the stairwell.
Arge group wasing down.
Graham and his team tensed, ready to draw their weapons, until Theresa spotted Eva leading the group, waving.
Theresa moved forward to meet her. “What happened?”
Five minutester, she got the full story.
Malik had split off with thirteen men–seven of them were ability users–leaving Eva with the rest.
Ny people, most of them weaker or untrained, now stood behind Eva.
They had chosen her.
Theresa crossed her arms. “Fine. You stick close tomorrow. We don’t babysit. If you get yourselves killed, that’s on you. This is your one shot. Don’t blow it.”
Eva nodded. “I got it.”
Theresa studied her for a moment, weighing her up. Eva had backbone, and Theresa could <b>respect </b>that. Taking her and her people in wasn’t charity–it was a calcted move.
Theresa never fooled herself into thinking she was some kind of hero. Survival wasn’t about ying saint. As long as she was still standing, keeping others alive was just a good strategy.
<b>2/3 </b>
Chapter 296 <b>Burn </b>the Bridge
Morning came fast<b>. </b>
Theresa’s crew was up early, dishing out a breakfast heavier than usual to boost everyone’s <b>energy</b>. <b>The </b>smell alone was enough to make Eva’s people stare.
Their own stash was a joke after Malik stripped them bare. Eva ran the numbers, weighed the <b>risk</b><b>, and </b>made the call. They finished everyst bit. No sense in rationing scraps when tomorrow wasn’t promised
Theresa walked over, holding a canteen. “If you’re short, borrow from me. Pay it backter<b>. </b>
Eva almost smiled for a second, imagining the zing Sun Alliance as Theresa had described it.
<i>Maybe </i>there’s <i>hope </i><i>after </i><i>all</i><i>. </i>A <i>ce </i><i>with </i><i>real </i><i>food</i>–<i>meat</i><b><i>, </i></b><i>vegetables</i><b><i>–</i></b><i>where </i><i>no </i><i>one </i>has to w over scraps. A ce <i>strong </i><i>enough </i><i>to </i><i>hold </i>it <i>all </i><i>together</i><i>. </i>
“No,” Eva rejected. “We’ll manage. Once we’re out, we’ll see it for ourselves.”
She wasn’t about to lean on anyone–not yet. Not until she saw that promised ce with her own eyes.
For now, they’d survive on their own, even if it meant crawling through hell to get there<b>. </b>