Rise of the Wasteland Chapter 66 - Escape

Chapter 66        Escape

“Nancy, stop it!”

“Nancy, it’s too dangerous outside. We shouldn’t be leaving this place.”

“Nancy, the murderer will kill you if he finds out that you’re trying to escape.”

A window was opened wide on the fifth floor of the building of the Society of the Divine Word. A rope made of sheets hung down from the window and it slowly fell to the ground. Nancy Stephanie stretched her head out of the window and smiled after making sure that the rope was long enough for her to escape.

“Are you guys gonna come with me?” Nancy Stephanie turned around and asked her companions.

However, all seven nurses who were captured by Zhou Qingfeng shook their heads at the same time. They had previously wanted to restore the health service system of Downtown Manhattan Hospital because of their sense of morality and responsibility. However, their bravery did not stem from nothing. It was built based on confidence of their safety.

But, their confidence no longer existed…...

The internet and media were still operating. All kinds of terrible crimes were hitting the headlines; even journalists were murdered from time to time. Various types of robbery, rape cases, and violence happened one after another. People around the world were truly disappointed about the current world.

On the contrary, the nurses who got captured did not feel like they were in a terrible state, given the circumstances. They had food, drinks, were able to rest and most importantly, they were not suffering. They initially thought that they will be watched after by some Africans. However, it seemed that nobody - including Victor Hugo, the leader of the criminals - had tried to harass them.

No one would be willing to escape in such a situation!

“Nancy, why must you leave?” a nurse tried persuading her. “What's wrong with staying here? Miss Fox has already told us that Mr. Hugo just wanted us to serve him. He has no plans to torture us.”

“But, I want to be free. I don’t want to be somebody’s slave,” Nancy replied her companion stubbornly. “I plan to visit the church. They might need me more. I don’t want to stay here and serve a murderer.”

After realizing that she would be alone, Nancy climbed down the rope by herself. She then waved to her companions after successfully landing on the ground. She said firmly, “Don’t worry! I’ll find someone to rescue you from this place.”

A few nurses stretched their heads out of the window as they watched their bravest companion gradually leave them behind. One of them asked, “Would Nancy be able to find someone to rescue us?”

“I don’t want to be rescued,” another nurse shouted. “It would be the right choice to follow a powerful man given the current circumstances."

Everyone went silent. No one could say that they were in an optimistic situation. Another nurse then said, "I hope Nancy comes back alive."

Nancy Stephanie was extremely happy that she succeeded at escaping from the building of the Society of the Divine Word. She felt like she had achieved a magnificent feat. After some hard work, she was finally able to escape the hands of the devil. She felt relieved as she was now able to breathe in some fresh air.

“I'm now on Fifth Avenue. Where should I go next?” Nancy looked at her surroundings. “Oh… I think that’s the Empire State Building! St. Batley Church should be nearby. I should go take a look. There’ll always be some righteous men who would be willing to fight evil.”

There was no one was on the street after a night of chaos, but the abandoned vehicles had nearly blocked the entire road. Nancy walked quickly on the streets, realizing that the previously bustling Manhattan had now became a bleak and barren moor. Occasionally, she could observe activity in some buildings. However, she was unwelcome.

'We don’t offer shelter for anyone!'

‘Private building, no entry!'

'Warning, no one is allowed to approach!'

Fifth Avenue in Manhattan was the world's most commercial place. It was the central business district for a large number of luxury shops. However, these shops had received different degrees of damage and most of the shops’ glass windows had been smashed.

Some buildings were closed. Discriminating signs were even displayed in front of those buildings. Nancy felt uncomfortable when she saw those signs.

“Why is all this happening? Why can’t they just save the rest? They’ve all lost faith.”

Nancy heard someone curse after she walked past a few streets. She hurriedly rushed towards it as she heard people screaming for help. She then saw a few people ganged up, beating a person of color.

“Hey… Stop it!” Nancy dashed forwards and shouted, “Why do you have to do this?”

The gang was of different race and gender. They seemed to be full of hatred and were bitter. They spat, “This guy was trying to rob our shop. He wounded one our friends and nearly killed a few of us.”

“No, no, no, my lady. I’ve never done anything like that. I’m just a passer-by. I can swear to God that I just happened to walk past here, but I was attacked.”

The person of color was lying on the ground and his head was soaked with blood. He begged Nancy for help.

“He’s lying. He broke into our shop with a pistol in his hand. He even wounded one of my employees,” a white-haired old man scolded him in anger. “He even burnt the Pagans to death. This kind of mad person deserves to be dead!”

“My lady, I’m truly innocent. They’re just trying to slander me,” the person of color begged pitifully. He even kneeled down in front of Nancy.

Nancy Stephanie was overwhelmed. She could not identify which side was telling the truth. In the end, she said, “Just leave this man alone. Even if he truly committed any crime, he has already received his punishment.”

The old man continued to curse, but he allowed the person of color to leave at the end. Realizing that Nancy was wearing a nurse costume, the old man asked, “Excuse me, could you please help me? My son was hurt. The hospitals nearby were crowded with patients. My son couldn’t receive any proper treatment.”

“Alright, I’ll help you,” Nancy was still enthusiastic when it came to helping others. She followed the group of people and after turning the corner, she saw a Tiffany and Co. jewelry shop. The glass cabinet, which used to be elegant, was smashed, but the situation inside the shop was still fairly acceptable.

Tiffany and Co. was a world-renowned jewelry brand. Every item sold in the shop was considerably expensive. There were more than thirty people, twenty guns, sufficient amount of ammunition, and security forces inside the shop.

However, they were unlucky even though they were well equipped. The old man was the manager of the store. He cursed once again as he said to Nancy, “Madam, that guy really did lie to you. He rushed into our shop and kept firing. He even wounded one of my employees.”

The employees inside the shop nodded their heads. The injured man lying on the sofa further proved his words. Nancy sighed; she did not care about the truth. She began to give the wounded first-aid.

Nancy’s first-aid skills were obviously much better than anyone in the shop. She cleaned the wound with simple first-aid drugs and equipment. She took the bullet out from the wounded arm. Her skills were truly impeccable.

“The medicine and equipment in this shop aren’t good enough. It’s best if you guys could get him a surgeon. That’s all I could do.”

Nancy wanted to suture the wound, but it was way beyond her abilities to do so. She could not help but think about the equipment and medicine that got plundered by Zhou Qingfeng in the hospital. She felt extremely angry for what Zhou Qingfeng had done.

“Thank you. Thank you so much.”

After watching the improvement of his employee’s situation, the old man was satisfied with her contribution. He even offered, “Madam, you’re a kind-hearted person. You can take any jewelry in this shop. Consider it as a gift from me.”

“No, no. I’m just doing what I should’ve done,” Nancy rejected the old man on the spot.

“Please don’t be too concerned about it. These jewelries are no longer valuable,” the old man smiled bitterly. “I understand that the world is doomed. Nobody would care about jewelry anymore. All we want now is to escape from this place. But, we do not have the ability to do so.”

Nancy was surprised. She asked, “Why? Why not?”

“Because, it’s not safe out there. Robbery is happening everywhere. Furthermore, it seems that the situation will only worsen. The old man advised, “Madam, you better stop walking around the streets, too. I’ve heard plenty of gunshots in this area since yesterday night.”

“But, I’m planning to go to the church nearby…” Nancy wanted to elaborate on her noble sentiments and great ideas about saving the world, but suddenly, she heard a gunshot from the outside of the shop. The old man who was talking to her got shot in his head.

Amidst the gunshots, the employees inside the shop screamed in fear, “We’re under attack! There’re a lot of people attacking us! Oh God, somebody please save us!”

Chapter end