But a lot of things that looked useless were left behind. Caroline and the others grabbed all the degrading solution. Then, they found a few packs of wet wipes, tissues, and even two cases of fans in the storage room. The fans weren't much use to them now, but if it got hot, they could always trade them for something else. The real prize was the sunscreen they found in one of the storage rooms. There were a dozen boxes, all different brands. Without a second thought, Caroline's group tossed all of them into the storage space. They also grabbed whatever miscellaneous supplies looked even slightly useful. They didn't even leave behind the toolbox sets tucked in the corner. By the time they'd finished packing up, it was already dark. They'd only had a quick bite for lunch, so they planned on having a real meal that night. Caroline took out some pasta with pesto sauce from the storage space, plus a bowl of chicken soup. She had added two drops of healing spring water to the chicken soup. After all this time, she'd come to see Denton and Tyler as true teammates, and she could see how sincerely they treated her. She couldn't tell them about the healing spring, but she could at least use a little of it to help boost their health. Tyler had brought food, too—pulled pork tacos and beef and tomato stew. Chicken soup and beef and tomato stew were both perfect for such cold weather. Denton took a bite of Caroline's pasta and then a sip of the chicken soup, instantly giving her a thumbs-up. "Caroline, your cooking is amazing. I've never had chicken soup that tasted this good! On a freezing night like this, chicken soup is the best." "Just eat already." Tyler tapped Denton on the head with his fork. Denton immediately shut up and started shoveling food into his mouth.People say a growing boy can eat a mountain, and Denton's appetite truly stunned Caroline. He ate like he could eat twenty pounds of food in one meal. ... For the next two days, the group focused only on gathering supplies. They cleared out every warehouse Tyler had marked, plus a few Caroline had on her list. Some of those came from the addresses she'd found in the safe. After visiting, they found that only one warehouse had already been emptied by someone else. The rest was untouched. Most of Tyler's picks were remote stores, malls, and small factories. Most places had no food left, but they didn't need any—they were just searching for any other gear that might come in handy. All told, in three days, they cleared out a leather factory, a clothing plant, a cosmetics factory, three stores, two shopping malls, and three warehouses on Caroline's list. That just left Harry's major supply bases—the grain and canning plants, a few marked scavenging locations, and the remote stashes from the safe, plus those villas. When Caroline, Tyler, and Denton made their way back, the temperature had already gone up to –22°F. In just a few days, it had warmed up by over 50°F. That made Caroline even more aware that time's running out. "Let's head back for now. For the rest, we'll have to trade with the army." Caroline had already told Tyler and Denton everything that happened with Harry. Tyler figured that the loot from some supply spots was only available because Caroline had killed Harry, so he and Denton wanted no part of it. After a brief discussion, they headed home. Looking back, their haul over the past few days was huge! Just as they got back to the apartment and were about to take the elevator to the 66th floor for a break before seeing Francis, Francis's people intercepted them at the stairwell. "Colonel Sutton's been waiting for you forever! You finally made it back!" the young soldier said, grinning from ear to ear. "The army can finally hold our heads up high! Colonel Sutton said he's going to return the favor for you this time—and with interest, too!" The soldier pressed the elevator button, taking Caroline's group to the office on the 40th floor. Caroline arched a brow. Did the army strike a fortune? Actually, she didn't know how busy Francis had been lately since the temperature went up. He'd gone to report to Nathaniel and finally got all the delayed supplies delivered. And all this time, the army's research team had been busy, despite the cold.