Surviving the Apocalypse with my Multiplier System - Chapter 73

Chapter 73: Stairwell Surprise
“Mommy, I’m going to look for food! The corner store had snacks earlier today,” Lily shouted as she ran out the door.

Her mother was still lying on the couch, waiting for her injury to heal, but she was already in a much better state than before.

She only had time to yell, “Be careful and come back soon!” before her daughter ran out the door.

When Lily finally reached the staircase after running down the hallway, she couldn’t believe her eyes! The staircase was filled with so many new supplies!

She noticed the basket with fresh red apples on top of the many cases of water and quickly reached over to grab it.

She used to not care much for apples, but now she looked at them with a sparkle in her eyes.

Grabbing the whole basket, she ran back home, startling her mom.

“What is it, Lily? Did something happen? You’re back so quickly?” her mom asked with worry. She looked over Lily a few times, making sure she was uninjured.

Lily moved the basket from behind her, showing off the fresh red apples. “Look, Mommy! I found these in the stairwell!” she said proudly, showing off her rare finds.

Her mom stared at the apples in the basket in disbelief. “Lily, where did you say you found these again?”

“In the stairwell! Just down the hall! Oh, there are so many more items there; it’s almost blocking the way downstairs,” replied Lily, grinning.

“There’s more? Lily, quickly call your brother and grandpa over to take a look with you!” she said. She wanted to go look for herself but knew that if she moved now, it would only agitate the wound, causing even more problems.

Although her father was old and had difficulty walking, going down the hall shouldn’t be a problem for him.

Lily quickly ran to her grandfather’s room, where her little brother was playing.

“Grandpa! Mommy wants you to come look at the supplies I found in the stairwell!” she announced as she walked into the room.

Walter looked at Lily with surprise. “Oh, you found some supplies in our stairwell?” He was surprised to hear this but slowly lifted himself off of his chair and followed Lily out.

Lily’s brother was also curious about what it was that Lily had found and dropped his toy, following them into the hallway.

When Walter finally arrived at the stairwell and saw the huge amount of supplies, his mind immediately went to Rayne.

“It must have been that kind lady who left us these supplies,” he said, patting Lily on the head.

She smiled and nodded. “Yes! She gave me a big chocolate bar. She’s the nicest!”

Walter made his way over to inspect what was there with his trembling hands. He was so happy that tears formed in his eyes.

Turning to Lily and her brother, he said, “Okay, you two, help your grandpa carry some of this inside.” He then handed some of the lighter items, such as crackers, to Lily’s brother while tasking Lily with some of the heavier items.

When they brought in the supplies and placed them down on the living room floor, Lily’s mom was in shock!

There were cases of water, many different canned goods, first aid kits, grains, sacks of flour, oil, and even a camping stove with propane tanks.

Lily carried in a puffy new blanket; it was so big that even when she held it over her head, it drooped down to the floor.

Walter finally walked in and sat down. “There are many more items, but I don’t feel right taking everything. We’ve already taken more than half, and these items will last us a long time. I say we leave them in the hall for the others to take.”

Lily’s mom nodded, agreeing with him. Their small living room was now filled to the brim with supplies, easing many of her current worries.

She wiped the tears from her eyes, happy that she could finally cook her children a proper meal after weeks of going hungry.

—-

In the rural countryside…

“Hey, Dad, the weather has gotten better today,” said Ella, running down the basement stairs. She had just gone upstairs to see the situation outside and noticed that the wind and rain had lessened significantly.

“Oh good, that means I can go out and look for supplies. I feel bad about already tapping into the canned food that Rayne gifted you,” he replied as he walked over to lift an old bicycle that was stored in the basement.

“Dad, I want to come with you,” said Ella. She felt cooped up inside, especially since they lived in the basement now after the hurricane took their roof. She also wanted to see how the rest of the world was.

He was about to shake his head when his wife spoke out, “Reggie, let her go with you. I’ll be okay here alone. I’m more worried about you. It’ll make me feel better knowing you can look out for each other.”

Ella walked over. “See? Please let me come with you. Plus, I’ll be there to carry more supplies if we do find something.”

Reginald looked at his beautiful wife, not wanting to leave her home alone. However, after both of them continued to persuade him, he finally agreed.

“Fine, Ella, you can come, but we won’t go far,” he said resolutely.

She nodded and went to find her old duffel bag, which was mixed with the random sports equipment stored in the basement closet. She used to come to this home often as a child, and many of her childhood items were kept there.

Reginald walked over to hug his wife. “I’ll be back soon. Don’t leave the basement. I love you, honey.”

“I love you too,” she smiled. Her husband loved her dearly, so much so that many of her friends were envious of their loving relationship. It was common for successful businessmen to have mistresses on the side, but Reginald loved her dearly since the day they met and stayed fiercely loyal.

“Okay, Dad, I’m ready!” said Ella, walking in on her parents’ romantic moment. She rolled her eyes at her dad. “We’re only going around the neighborhood. You’re making it seem like we’re flying to a different planet!”

Her mom giggled at her words. She patted her husband affectionately on the back. “Go. The sooner you leave, the sooner you’ll come back.”

Reginald nodded, stood up, and carried his bike up the basement stairs. Ella did the same with her bike, along with two sports duffel bags.