Enza's "Hug Ledger" had grown exponentially over the years. For each person she helped, another name was added to a little booklet - not the phone, lest it be confiscated.

Enza stood in the kitchen, her hands deftly working through the last of her fresh vegetables, chopping and sautéing as if the world weren't on the brink of destruction. The scent of garlic and canned tomatoes filled the air, mingling with the ever-present sense of tension that had settled over the city. The global famine had hit hard, but Enza had prepared for it. She'd been stockpiling food for years, her pantry full of canned goods, dried pasta, and preserved vegetables.

The world had six months left—maybe less—until Armageddon, but Enza wasn't about to abandon the skills that had kept her and countless others alive. She had grown accustomed to making miracles happen with a few cans of beans, some dried herbs, and whatever else she could scrounge up.

Her phone buzzed on the counter. Enza wiped her hands on a towel and picked it up, squinting at the screen. Naomi's face appeared on the video call, her expression tight and serious. She was in Petra, surrounded by the Tribulation Force, far away from the chaos that still gripped the rest of the world.

"Enza," Naomi began, her voice tense. "I need to talk to you about the food."

Enza raised an eyebrow but didn't stop working, stirring the pot in front of her. "What about it?"

Naomi's face flickered with a mix of frustration and urgency. "We need you to release all of it. The famine is worse than we thought, and people are starving everywhere. The fight's almost over—Jesus will be back in six months. He'll make the Earth fertile again. We don't need to worry about running out of food."

Enza's hand paused over the stove, but she didn't look up from her work. "So you want me to just give it all away? Everything I've been saving, all the food that could last for years if managed properly?"

"Yes," Naomi said firmly. "There's no need to keep it anymore. Jesus will fix everything."

Enza finally looked up, her eyes hard but calm. "Jesus will fix everything? Naomi, you've told me the people in Petra are getting manna from heaven every day. But no one else is. The rest of the world is still starving, and we've got six months left, maybe less. You really think I'm going to empty my reserves on the assumption that everything will be fine when he shows up?"

Naomi flinched slightly, her eyes flicking down to the mark on Enza's hand. That little movement didn't escape Enza's notice.

"That's what this is really about, isn't it?" Enza asked, her voice sharp but controlled. "The mark. You don't trust me because I took it."

Naomi hesitated before speaking. "There have been… discussions within the Tribulation Force. Some think we should cut ties with you because of it. You're marked, Enza. You're on the wrong side."

Enza let out a short, bitter laugh. "And yet, I'm still the one feeding people. I'm the one keeping them alive. I've been helping your group, Naomi, but I've also been helping others—non-Christians, people who don't expect Jesus to come back in six months and make everything better."

Naomi's expression softened slightly, but she didn't back down. "We're in the final stretch, Enza. The battle is almost won. If you release the food now, you'll be helping more people than you can imagine."

Enza shook her head, her tone resolute. "I'm not releasing everything. Not yet. I'll help as much as I can—just like I've always done—but I'm not draining the reserves. I've lived through war, Naomi. I know what it's like when people say, 'Just give it all up, the fight's almost over.' But the fight is never over until it's over. I need a margin of safety. If I release it all now and something goes wrong in these six months—what happens to the people who rely on me then?"

Naomi's frustration was palpable, but she didn't argue further. Instead, she took a deep breath. "I understand that you're trying to be careful, but the time for caution is over."

Enza scoffed. "No, the time for caution is exactly now. You and your people in Petra might be getting your food from the sky, but the rest of us still have to grow, trade, and cook for our survival."

Naomi's eyes softened, and for a moment, the tension between them seemed to ease. "What if… what if you're in danger? What if the Global Community comes after you?"

Enza gave her a wry smile. "I've lived through worse than that. But now that I have this new phone, I've been thinking. You know how to send a text message to multiple people at once, right? Show me how to do it, just in case."

Naomi blinked, momentarily thrown off by the sudden change in subject. "Uh, sure. I can show you."

Enza grabbed her phone, and Naomi walked her through the steps of sending group texts, explaining how to create a contact list and reach multiple people in an instant. It was a small thing, but in a world where information could save lives, it was a useful tool.

"Thanks for showing me," Enza said as she finished setting it up. "I'm not planning on needing it, but if I do… well, I'll know who to reach out to."

Naomi nodded, her voice softening. "I hope you don't need it either, Enza. I really do. But please… think about what I said."

Enza sighed, glancing at the pot simmering on the stove. "I'll think about it. But I won't release all the food. Not yet."

Naomi's face flickered with disappointment, but she didn't argue further. "Just be careful, okay?"

Enza smiled, a little sadly. "Careful is what I've always been. That's why I'm still here."

As the video call ended, Enza stood in the quiet of her kitchen, her hands resting on the counter. The world was teetering on the edge, and everyone seemed to think they knew how it would end. But Enza had lived long enough to know that certainty was a luxury no one could afford.

She turned back to the stove, stirring the pot once more. Six months, they said. Six months until everything changed. But in those six months, she would keep doing what she'd always done—helping, feeding, and surviving.