Monica and the others were seething.
Claire was the one who had lured them into attacking Ethan's place—and now, after getting people injured and killed, she wanted to ditch them all and live in comfort?
Absolutely not.
Still writhing in pain on the couch, Peter stared at Claire, his eyes nearly bursting from their sockets.
"Claire! How could you do this to me? Didn't you say you hated Ethan the most?"
"You told me—you said if you were gonna be someone's woman, it'd be mine!"
Claire held her slapped cheek, but clenched her teeth, defiant. "So what? Is it wrong for me to pursue happiness?"
"Do you all think we'll survive together forever? Once the supplies are gone, we're all dead."
"But Ethan's place? It's warm. There's food, water, everything. What's wrong with me going to him?"
She looked down at Peter with a calm, 'you should understand me' expression.
"Peter, you're a good guy. You've always been nice to me…"
"But real love means wishing the best for the one you care about, right?"
"You helped me before, sure—but can you give me the life Ethan can?"
Peter's face turned ghostly pale. He stammered, unable to respond.
Dr. Chloe frowned. "Don't move. If I hit the wrong artery, you're dead."
Monica hurried over to help restrain Peter. "Calm down, cousin. That bitch isn't worth dying over."
Then she turned her fury on Claire. "You want to leave? Fine! But not unless Ethan trades you for medicine."
Natalie stood in front of the door too, raising her chin. "If she goes, we go together!"
Claire gave them both a hateful glare, then looked toward her phone. "Ethan, you heard them! They won't let me go! Why don't you just give them some meds?"
Ethan was still in the kitchen, watching the drama unfold.
Hearing Claire's plea, he chuckled and said, "Medicine's a precious commodity, Claire. How do I know they're not lying to you? Or using you to trick me?"
"Maybe they're planning to hold you hostage to extort more supplies."
"Claire, we can't fall for that kind of trap."
His voice was on speaker. Everyone in the room could hear it.
Peter howled from the living room. "Claire, don't trust him! He's just using you!"
They all thought the same.
But Claire had long since lost her grip on reality.
To her, Ethan was hope itself. And like a drowning person grabbing a straw, she refused to let go—even if it meant dragging everyone down.
She nodded furiously. "You're right, Ethan! You're always right."
Then, like a woman possessed, she charged at Natalie.
"Get out of my way, bitch! Don't stop me!"
The two women immediately got into a hair-pulling, nail-scratching, full-blown catfight.
Claire clawed and bit, even sank her teeth into Natalie's shoulder. Natalie screamed and fought back.
The two collapsed to the floor, scratching and shrieking like wild animals.
Monica couldn't take it anymore. With surgeries still happening, their brawl was dangerous.
She jumped in, grabbing Claire with Natalie's help, and after a brief struggle, they pinned her down.
"LET ME GO! LET ME GOOOO!"
Claire thrashed and howled like a madwoman.
Monica lost her patience. SMACK! SMACK SMACK!
She slapped Claire across the face—left and right, again and again—until Claire was dazed and silent.
"You wanna leave?" Monica hissed. "Dream on."
She grabbed Claire's phone and dialed Ethan.
Ethan shrugged as he answered. "Too many of you. I'm scared. What if you kill me the moment I open the door?"
"So Claire, baby… I want to live with you, but your friends won't let me. Don't blame me, okay?"
He made sure to say it loudly.
Claire, still on the floor, heard every word. Her face twisted into a mask of betrayal and hate as she glared at the others.
Ethan hung up with a sinister smile.
There was nothing crueler than offering hope to someone who's already desperate—only to rip it away at the last second.
Let them kill Claire for all he cared.
She wasn't getting through that door.
Back inside the apartment, Claire's wailing turned into bitter sobs.
But her hatred wasn't aimed at Ethan.
It was aimed at Peter, Monica, and the others who'd stopped her.
She thought: If it weren't for them, I'd be in Ethan's cozy home right now, eating steak by the fireplace!
Monica sneered at Claire's misery.
She turned to Natalie, who had held her ground and helped subdue Claire.
At least someone wasn't a total traitor.
"See this?" Monica said coldly. "That woman only cares about herself."
"If you still want to be part of this group, keep her on a leash. Don't let her run."
Natalie nodded furiously. "Yes, Monica. I'll do whatever you say!"
Then she turned to Claire and hissed through gritted teeth:
"I won't let you run off alone. If we suffer, you suffer too! You don't get to escape and live in comfort!"
In the living room, Dr. Chloe finished the last of the makeshift surgeries.
With no disinfectants or anesthesia, all she could do was pull out the rusted arrows and wrap the wounds.
To make it worse, even the alcohol was frozen solid—completely useless.
The only good news?
It was so cold, they passed out from pain quickly.
But the downside was obvious: in this extreme cold, the damaged flesh could easily start dying.
Wiping blood from her gloves, Chloe looked at Monica.
"This is temporary. If you don't get antibiotics soon, infection is inevitable."
"You'd better be mentally prepared."
Monica's heart sank.
They had no medicine.
And Ethan… wasn't going to give them a damn thing.