Apocalypse Days: I Rule with Foresight and a Powerful Son
Chapter 114:

Chapter 114: 114:

"Hold it."

Two guards stepped into their path. Armed.

Winter instinctively shifted in front of Zara. His posture calm, but ready.

The lead guard, a stocky man with a shaved head, stopped just short of them, his expression unreadable.

"You," he said, pointing at Winter. "We know who you are."

Silence stretched between them, thick and tense.

Leo let out a small yawn, nuzzling against Zara’s shoulder. She hoped her fear wasn’t showing on her face, that would definitely give her out if her heart didn’t beat out of her chest first.

Winter met the guard’s gaze evenly. "Do you?"

"You’ve been watching the security teams," the second guard accused. "That’s suspicious behaviour."

Zara subtly shifted Leo in her arms, her grip tightening.

This was bad. They couldn’t afford to be on security’s radar.

Winter, to his credit, didn’t flinch. He met the guard’s gaze, his tone calm. "Is it illegal to look around?"

The first guard smirked. "Depends on why you’re looking."

Winter knew this game. He’d played it before. The wrong answer could mean detainment, interrogation, or worse.

His heartbeat remained steady. "Just keeping track of the world around me."

The guards exchanged a glance.

"You’re former military, aren’t you?"

Winter’s shoulders remained relaxed, but inside, he was already calculating their next move.

"Yes." No point denying it. His background wasn’t exactly a secret.

The second guard studied him for a moment, then finally nodded toward Leo. "For his sake, keep your head down."

Winter’s lips barely twitched. "I’ll take that under advisement. We’re just being cautious. People are on edge after last night’s breach."

The guards exchanged glances.

Then the taller one leaned in slightly. "Maybe so. But someone like you knows better than to poke around where you shouldn’t."

It wasn’t just a warning. It was a message.

Winter’s jaw clenched. "Understood."

The guards lingered a second longer before stepping back. "Stay inside after curfew," one of them said before walking off.

Zara and Winter didn’t move until they were gone.

Zara let out a slow breath, shifting Leo slightly. "That was close."

Winter’s gaze flickered toward where the pale man had been.

He was gone.

His stomach tightened.

"Too close."

Their quarters were cold, but at least it was quiet. Zara peeled off her coat, tossing it onto the chair before setting Leo down on the bed.

Winter locked the door behind them and exhaled sharply. "They’re onto us."

Zara sighed, rubbing her temples as she sat on the edge of the cot. "Then we move faster."

A sharp knock at the door made both her and Winter go still.

Winter was on his feet in an instant, his hand drifting toward the knife at his belt as he shot Zara a look. She nodded slightly and shifted towards the corner Leo was in as Winter moved to the door.

He cracked the door open just enough to see a young man outside—nervous, shifting on his feet. His eyes darted around like he was expecting someone to grab him at any moment. Then his eyes darted past Winter into the room before settling back on him.

"I heard you’re looking for a way in," the man said without hesitation. "We need to talk."

Winter’s expression didn’t change. Every muscle in his body remained still, assessing.

Too suspicious.

They had barely slipped away from the guards, and suddenly, someone was here offering them exactly what they needed? No way.

Winter shook his head. "You’ve got the wrong place," he said coolly. "We’re not interested in anything that’s not public knowledge."

The young man blinked in surprise, clearly not expecting that answer. "What? No, I—"

His lips parted like he wanted to argue, but Winter was already shutting him down.

Winter shook his head, his expression cool. "Sorry, friend. You must be mistaken."

Zara schooled her face into neutrality, but she knew exactly what Winter was thinking. A test. Either the guards had sent this man to bait them, or someone was getting desperate enough to lure them into a trap.

Leo toddled up to Zara, gripping his little toy truck in his chubby fingers. "Mommy," he said, tugging at her sleeve, "play with me? Where’s Big Brother? Want to play with Mike too."

Zara glanced down at him, softening, before flicking her gaze back to Winter.

Winter sighed dramatically, turning back to the man. "I’m trying to spend time with my wife and kid," he said, voice laced with finality. "Excuse us."

Zara’s face went red instantly.

Before she could recover, Winter smoothly shut the door in the man’s face, bolting it. He turned to find Zara still frozen, her expression a mix of surprise and something he could only describe as flustered panic.

A slow, teasing grin spread across his face. "What are you looking at down there?"

Zara, still avoiding his gaze, sputtered, "N-nothing."

Leo, always eager to mimic, immediately dropped to the floor and started scanning it curiously. "What Mommy looking at?" he asked, his little brow furrowed.

Zara groaned, covering her face with her hands.

Winter chuckled, arms crossing over his chest. "Yeah, Zara," he drawled. "What are you looking at?"

She shot him a glare, but with her face still burning, it lacked any real heat. "I hate you," she muttered.

Leo gasped dramatically. "No hate! Mommy, no hate!" He climbed onto the bed, reaching out with his small hands to pull at her sleeve. "Play! Play now!"

Zara let out a breath and picked him up, kissing his soft little curls. "Alright, alright. Just for a little while."

Leo beamed, clapping his hands as he plopped onto the bed with his truck.

Winter was still grinning.

She shot him a glare as she sat beside Leo. "Not. A. Word."

Winter held up his hands in mock surrender.

He watched as Zara entertained him, letting the moment stretch a little longer.

Eventually, once Leo was distracted and deep into his own little world, making engine noises with his toy, Zara turned back to Winter, her expression serious again.

"So," she murmured, voice quieter now, "what do we do about that guy?"

Winter leaned against the wall, arms still crossed. "We assume he’s either bait, or someone’s watching him. Either way, we don’t take the risk."

Zara nodded. "Agreed."

She sat cross-legged on the thin mattress, rubbing her temples as she exhaled. "We need to be smart about this," she murmured. Across from her, Winter sat on the edge of the rickety chair, elbows on his knees, brow furrowed.

"We can’t make a move now," he agreed. "Curfew’s in full effect, and the guards are already suspicious. If we start creeping around now, we’ll be signing our own execution orders."

Zara nodded. "We wait. A few days, at least. Let things settle. The officials coming for the inspection could work in our favour—more distractions, more moving parts. It means security will be focused on them instead of random nobodies like us."

Winter traced a finger against the rough wood of the chair’s armrest. "If we’re doing this, we need a plan. We go in fast, get what we need, and get out before anyone notices something’s missing. No unnecessary risks."

Zara smirked. "When have we ever taken unnecessary risks?"

Winter shot her a dry look. "Are you serious? Everything we do is an unnecessary risk."

She chuckled softly but then grew serious again. "Fine. We observe, we prepare, and we wait for the right time. But when the moment comes, we go all in."

Winter gave a sharp nod. "Agreed."

*****

Zara busied herself setting out their meager dinner—some kind of watered-down stew, stale bread, and a handful of root vegetables. It wasn’t much, but it was warm.

Leo, small hands gripping his toy truck, plopped onto the mattress with a giggle. "Uncle feed me," he announced, looking straight at Winter.

Zara raised an eyebrow, amused. "Can you feed him?"

Winter huffed but didn’t protest as Leo clambered into his lap, wiggling until he was comfortable. "Alright, kid," he muttered, picking up a spoonful of stew. "Open up."

Leo did so eagerly, humming happily as he chewed. Zara leaned against the wall, watching them with a soft smile. Winter caught the look in her eyes and shifted slightly, suddenly feeling self-conscious under her gaze.

"What?" he asked.

Zara smirked. "Nothing."

He narrowed his eyes but let it go, instead focusing on making sure Leo didn’t drop food all over him.

*****

Later, Zara and Leo made their way to the communal bathhouses. The warm steam softened the air, and Zara was surprised to see a few other women there, each holding a small child close to their chest as they washed.

Leo hesitated, gripping her hand tightly as he observed the other kids. They were his age, playing in the shallow water, splashing each other, but he didn’t say a word.

One of the women smiled at Zara. "You should check out the daycare," she suggested. "It helps with socializing them."

Zara shook her head politely. "I prefer to keep him close."

The woman just nodded knowingly.

Leo, still uncertain, eventually reached out a tiny hand toward another child, brushing against their fingers. The other child grinned, babbling nonsense, and Leo shyly smiled back.

*****

By the time Zara carried Leo back to their room, the little boy was knocked out cold, his face pressed against her shoulder. Winter was already there, waiting.

"Looks like he had fun," he observed, nodding toward Leo.

Zara smiled, adjusting the sleeping toddler in her arms. "Yeah. He’s out like a light."

Winter stood, stretching. "Good. Now we can talk without him repeating everything we say."

Zara smirked. "You worried about him picking up bad habits?"

Winter sighed. "More like I don’t want him going around calling me something weird in front of the wrong people."

Zara chuckled softly and laid Leo down, covering him with a thin blanket before turning back to Winter. "Alright. Let’s get back to work."

Zara sat on the edge of the rickety bed, absently running a hand through Leo’s soft curls as he slept. Winter leaned against the far wall, arms crossed, his gaze flickering toward the door every so often.

A scraping sound at the door made them both go rigid.

What the hell was that? An animal? There were no creatures in the base asides controlled livestock. A person?

Winter held up a hand, silently telling Zara to stay put as he moved toward the entrance. He didn’t open it immediately. Instead, he pressed himself to the side, just out of sight, and listened.

Nothing.

Then, a soft rustling sound—something sliding beneath the door.

Winter moved swiftly, crouching down to retrieve a small, folded scrap of paper. He exchanged a glance with Zara before carefully unfolding it.

Scrawled in messy, hurried writing were three words:

They’re watching you.

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