Frederick and Wilona stood frozen at the doorway, staring in disbelief at the scene unfolding before them. Life in Hillside Villa District had stayed a lot more "peaceful" than the outside world. Sure, things weren't as luxurious as before, but most residents still managed to hold onto a semblance of pre-apocalypse dignity. So unlike people on the outside, they hadn't grown numb to violence, death, or the kind of "undignified" corpses left behind. Wilona, in particular, went pale and immediately doubled over, vomiting. Frederick's hand trembled as he pointed at Natalie. "What the hell are you doing?!" Natalie ignored him. Instead, she raised her rifle and aimed it straight at Wilona. "Hold it in. Don't you dare throw up." The villa was huge and already a pain to clean. If she puked all over the place, that was going to be a problem. Wilona had already been overwhelmed by the visual shock—disgusted, terrified, and now suddenly staring down the barrel of a rifle. The panic hit her so hard that, somehow, she swallowed it back down. Frederick recoiled in horror. "Wilona! What the hell?!" Wilona's face was chalk white. "Babe ... I'm scared ... " There's something seriously wrong with these cops ... Natalie shot them both a look of pure irritation. "Out." Frederick, who'd been treated like royalty his entire life, had never been barked at like that before. His expression darkened instantly. "What precinct are you with? How dare you speak to me like that? Do you even know who I am?" Natalie rolled her eyes and raised her gun again, this time pointing it right at his forehead."I don't care who you are. I'm giving you to the count of three. Either get out of my sight or out of this world." "Three—" "You've got some nerve!" "Two—" "Aaahhh!" Wilona screamed and bolted, running as fast as she could. "One." Natalie lowered her rifle, satisfied as she watched Frederick turn and sprint away like his life depended on it. Without sparing another glance at the two retreating figures, she turned back and continued checking out the villa. It was a three-story house, with a living room and four or five spacious bedrooms on each floor. Olivia walked around, wide-eyed. "This place is huge. It's more than enough space for all of us to live together." Harold's eyes lit up. "That's actually a great idea, and it'd be safer if we stayed under one roof." Olivia had only said it offhand, but now she nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah, I agree. A house this big would honestly be kinda creepy to live in alone." Harold looked around, impressed. "We could each take a floor. Even then, there's still tons of space. It'd be like before, just neighbors upstairs and downstairs. And if anything happens, we've got backup." Olivia nodded. Then the two of them looked toward Natalie. "What do you think, Nat?""What about you, idol?" But Natalie had no plans to live with them. She needed frequent access to her storage space, not to mention she had the three mischievous little ones running around. Living with anyone else would just complicate things. She shook her head without hesitation. "I'll pass. You guys can take this one. I'll find another place nearby." Olivia and Harold exchanged a glance, like something had just clicked for them. "Ohhh, right. Nat's got a love life to manage. Us being around all the time would definitely get in the way." Natalie went silent. That's not what she meant at all ... Harold tilted his head, curious. "Idol, doesn't Mr. Holland live somewhere in this neighborhood too? You planning to just move in with him?" Natalie quickly waved him off. "Absolutely not!" In her mind, no matter what the world turned into, it was still important to have a place of her own. She and Cassian had only just gotten together, she still needed her own personal space. There were plenty of villas to choose from. Why not pick one for herself? That was one of the perks of the apocalypse—no mortgage, no rent. Just pick a house, and it's yours. Natalie turned to the others. "You guys start cleaning up. I'm gonna check out the place next door." With that, she walked out on her own. Meanwhile, Wilona and Frederick—still shaken after Natalie had pulled a gun on them—came screaming back into their own home.Their shouting quickly drew attention from the neighbors nearby. "What the hell's going on? Why's Frederick running like that? Looks like he saw a ghost!" "No clue. We should go take a look!" "Don't go out. Just check from the yard. Things aren't exactly safe these days, better to be cautious." A man and woman stepped out of their villa, peering out from behind the gate. Just then, they spotted Natalie walking out of the house across the street. The woman frowned. "Isn't that the Harrett residence? Why is there a cop coming out of it?" The man replied, "You think something happened to Mr. Harrett?" The woman called out toward Natalie, "Excuse me! Hello there, are you with the government?" Natalie turned around at the sound of the voice. The woman's eyes widened when she saw her face. "Natalie?" Natalie squinted at her for a second. "Talia?" Talia looked nothing like she had the last time they met, back when she'd been surrounded by staff, glowing with luxury. She wasn't as gaunt as the people starving in the city, but no amount of posture or makeup could hide the exhaustion in her face.