Hatred instantly flooded my heart.

I wanted nothing more than to drive this so-called family out at the moment.

But simply forcing them out would not make them experience true suffering.

“Well? Don’t just stand there silently!

“Amelia, all these years raising you were a total waste!”

My mother’s harsh words hit me. She had done this before, too. She moved in without ever considering my feelings.

“Athena and Elio have nowhere else to go. It’s not such a big deal for you to let them stay awhile.”

Even as she spoke, she was already telling Athena to pick a room.

“I’m taking this one. The extra space will be better for me and Elio.”

Back then, I did not refuse.

This time, too, I let it be.

“Of course. It’s the least we can do.”

The real show had only just begun.

Last time, I genuinely wanted to help them.

But how did they repay me?

They teamed up with James and pushed me to my death.

This time, I did help Athena.

I was going to make her taste my despair. I eagerly anticipated their arrival and waited for them to walk right into their doom.

James returned that evening.

He was quite displeased to hear that my mother had brought Athena over.

“Dear, why didn’t you talk to me first before letting your mother and sister move in? This is my house too!”

James threw his briefcase at me.

I had to wait on him hand and foot. I had to help him take off his coat every time, too.

This was typical behavior for him. He never treated me like a wife. I was just a maid to him instead.

Back then, I loved him so much that I would have done anything for him. I eagerly took care of his every need.

Yet, he had an affair with Athena and conspired with her to frame me.

All my affection for him had long since vanished.

“Athena is a single mother, James. She’s struggling. I couldn’t just turn my back on her.”

James only felt more disdainful when I said that.

To him, I had just invited some deadbeat relatives to mooch off him.

But his attitude shifted the second he realized Athena was beautiful.

She was not just prettier than me. She was stunning.

I was so foolish back then. I failed to see the desire in James’s eyes the moment he first looked at Athena.

Athena also took a liking to James. The two of them hit it off instantly.

I pretended not to notice the chemistry between them.

“It’s not easy for Athena. Being a single mother is tough… You should look out for her, Dear.”

His eyes gleamed with lust whenever he looked at Athena.

I had been too naive to notice their suspicious behavior before.

This time, if the despicable pair wanted to get together, I would be more than happy to give them a push.

James might be a cheater, but he had one redeeming quality. He would still let me manage most of his money.

In the past, he took it all back the second he set his sights on Athena.

He would not get that chance this time. I made an excuse to leave the house for supplies.

My mother kept bossing me around and demanded that I buy crab and beef for Elio.

She said her precious grandson could not stomach cheap food.

I did not argue and agreed to every demand.

It made no difference to me. They would not be enjoying this for long.

The frozen apocalypse would arrive in one week.

I must prepare myself.

To avoid raising suspicion, I secretly went to the neighboring residential area and bought an unwanted top-floor apartment.

Rumor had that someone had jumped to their death in this unit and that vengeful spirits lingered inside.

Even though this penthouse had been on the market for a long time, no one wanted it, so the price kept dropping.

I spent only $100,000 to acquire this nearly 2,000-square-foot apartment!

I refused to wait for death with them in the frozen apocalypse, much less let them kill me again.

I had already died once. The fact that someone had died here did not frighten me at all.

After all, the living could be far more terrifying than the dead.

The penthouse was on the eighth floor. The location was ideal. It would not be submerged by the snowdrifts from the endless winter storms, and it offered easier access for foraging during utility blackouts.

Even so, these advantages were still not enough.

This house could not withstand temperatures like –40 °F.

I could still remember the despair I had felt.

I recalled vividly the searing pain, the sound of agonized cries, and the relentless hunger.

The memory alone was enough to make me shudder.

The apartment had three small rooms.

I planned to use one of the smaller rooms as a storage space.

In order to survive, I had to store supplies properly.

I knew the power grid would be the first thing to fail when the frozen apocalypse hit.

Little by little, I stocked the room with frozen produce and packaged meats.

These were the supplies that would save my life once the frozen apocalypse arrived.

Water meant survival, so I also stocked up on plenty of drinking water.

Once the two-year frozen apocalypse began, it would be impossible to buy drinking water from supermarkets.

By that time, all lake water, river water, and even seawater would freeze solid.

With no power and no way to make fire, everyone would be plunged into utter despair.

Before, they never cared about my well-being. They made me scramble all over town to buy supplies, which was what barely sustained them for over a month.

Deep down, I understood that even if Athena had not pushed me off the building, I would have eventually frozen to death in that relentlessly frigid environment.

But the real problem was that they did not treat me like a fellow human being.

They used me until I was no longer useful, then they kicked me to the curb.

These thoughts made my heart ache.

I worried that someone would notice my frantic shopping for supplies, so I always split my purchases between different supermarkets.

Yet, someone still noticed me one day.

“Amelia, why are you buying so much bread?”

It was Mrs. Smith from my residential complex. “I thought it was just you and James at home?”

Thankfully, I reacted quickly and brushed it off with a laugh.

“Oh, Mrs. Smith, my family’s visiting!

“They don’t go bad easily, so I thought I’d make them some sandwiches. If they turn out to be good enough, I might even try selling them at a market stall and earn some money.”

Mrs. Smith was very interested when she heard that.

“You have to take me with you if you do! I’m so bored with nothing to do around the house.”

I agreed with a little laugh.

Mrs. Smith was the neighborhood’s biggest gossip.

If I were to say no, she would have told everyone in the neighborhood about it.

But the good thing was, I had already gotten everything I needed.

I stocked up on large quantities of frozen food. I even went as far as to buy a diesel generator and several tons of heating coal.

This way, I could still cook.

I also bought massive rolls of insulation foam and hired contractors to retrofit the house and seal it up tightly.

I also had multiple heavy-duty security bars installed on every door and window.

If anyone ever discovered my stockpile, these precautions would save my life.

During the frozen apocalypse, the rule of law vanished completely.

There were even desperate stories of people trading their own children for food.

I had to be my own first and last line of defense.

I also stockpiled knives and other blades, just in case things got that desperate.

My preparations were finally complete.

I was fully ready to face the imminent frozen apocalypse.

Lately, I never returned home early because I was busy building an apocalypse bunker.

My mother looked at me with pure disdain the second I got home.

“Where do you keep running off to all day? You could at least stay home and help Athena with the baby.”

I looked at them with an apologetic expression. “Mom, I’ve been trying to look for a job.

“Now that you and Athena are living here, I can’t let James shoulder the burden for all of us.”

I knew this was the only excuse they would believe even if it provoked my mother’s fury.

Sure enough, the next moment, my mother flew into a rage. She slapped me hard across the face.

“Amelia! You are so ungrateful!

“I spent all these years raising you, but you keep score of everything just because James has to support me and Athena for a few days!

“Looking for a job? Who are you trying to fool with that act? You just want to kick us out, don’t you?”

Athena stood in a corner and chimed in with her own snide remarks.

“Amelia, how do you know if James actually minds spending money on us?

“You’re just jealous that he took Mom and me shopping and left you out.”

I knew Athena and James had already begun an affair at this time.

James was blinded by lust.

He would do almost anything for Athena.

I heard they spent tens of thousands of dollars on that one shopping trip.

James had never been that generous with me.

As soon as he returned from work, Athena complained to him about my plans to find a job.

James pulled me into a room to talk it out. He was clearly upset.

“You should just stay home. It’s my money they’re spending, not yours. If I’m not complaining, why should you?”

He looked at me indifferently.

It was a world away from the raw desire and affection he showed Athena.

This was the man I had loved for years.

“Alright. Whatever you say.”

I pretended to be compliant, but inwardly, I felt nothing but disgust.

The frozen apocalypse would begin in two days, and they would get exactly what they deserved.

Soon enough, the apocalypse began.

At first, the temperature dropped to 14 °F.

At first, no one paid it any mind.

They thought it was just an unusually cold winter that year.

But when the temperature fell to –4 °F, people finally began to realize something was wrong.

[This is an emergency alert. A catastrophic global temperature drop is triggering a massive blizzard. All residents must take shelter immediately and stockpile emergency supplies.

[There are now confirmed reports from around the world of multiple fatalities resulting from hypothermia and starvation due to extreme conditions.]