Chapter 3

Returning them was out of the question. I took the bags to the shipping center and mailed them all back to my hometown.

The clerk looked at me a bit strangely. “Why are you buying so many puffer coats?”

I smiled. “My folks are old-school, not into online shopping. I bought these for them in the city and mailed them over.”

The clerk chuckled. “Is it going to be that cold this year? It hasn’t even snowed yet. Isn’t this a bit much?”

A bit much? Oh, it was *definitely* not enough.

In my previous life, I saw online predictions of the coldest winter ever recorded, so I prepared by buying warm clothes and stocking up on food and supplies.

At first, Asher and his family accused me of wasting money, thinking I was overreacting.

They scoffed, claiming it couldn't possibly get so cold that we couldn't leave the house.

But then, the temperature plummeted to a terrifying minus seventy degrees Fahrenheit.

The Arctic Apocalypse had arrived.

Even bundled up like a human marshmallow in thick puffer coats, walking outside for more than half an hour would lead to certain death.

It was then Asher and his family finally realized how right I had been.

Just when I thought we could survive by staying indoors, Chloe, completely love-struck, went into full panic mode.

She received a FaceTime call from Liam.

He said his family had run out of food, and despite wearing all their clothes, they were still freezing.

He feared they’d freeze to death within days.

Chloe, upon hearing this, immediately became heartbroken and rushed to go out to deliver him puffer coats and supplies.

I knew the roads outside were mostly impassable. Even driving, she wouldn't get far. Going out now was a death sentence.

I desperately tried to dissuade her, telling her that self-preservation was paramount, and with no end in sight for this extreme weather, we needed to hoard as many supplies as possible.

Chloe shoved me hard, tears streaming down her face as she wailed, “You just can’t stand to see me happy! He’s my world, my *everything*! If he dies, I’m dying with him!”

My in-laws and Asher had always spoiled Chloe rotten, giving her anything she desired. Hearing her outburst, they all started yelling at me, calling me cold-hearted and cruel.

They even packed up the extra puffer coats for Chloe and urged her to go.

Chloe wiped her tears, pointing at the coat I was wearing.

“We still need one more. Cassidy’s coat looks perfect, let her give it to me too.”

I couldn’t fight all three of them.

Asher held me down while they ripped my jacket off, and then Mrs. Stone actually *kicked* me out the door, telling me to “think about what I’d done”!

I pounded on the door, desperate to get back inside. Before I could knock twice, my fingers, like frozen icicles, snapped right off my hands.

Ten minutes later, I lost consciousness.

This time, I would not sit back and let it happen. I would survive this.

After mailing the packages, I rushed to a wholesale market and bought a stash of fake pearls, fake diamonds, and fake gold. Two large bags cost me only fifty bucks.

While choosing the fake gold, I noticed a security camera, the kind with an intercom, sitting on the boss’s counter.

Walking out of the market, I spotted a clothing store having a clearance sale.

Designer puffer coats, all for just ten dollars each.

What kind of puffer coat could you get for ten bucks? No need to think twice, they definitely wouldn’t keep anyone warm.

Chloe loved doing good deeds, didn’t she? Well, I’d make sure she had plenty of chances to do just that.