18 Floors Above the Apocalypse

Chapter 16

Angela invited Stella to come downstairs and check out the situation. The flour was all gone, and though there was still a bag of rice, the gas had run out. All they had left was a few pieces of alcohol briquettes.

To conserve energy, they'd soak rice first, pour boiling water into a thermos, let the rice sit until it was cooked, and then eat it.

If they could, Angela and Lukas would go to the emergency shelter. The conditions wouldn't be great, but at least there would be enough to eat and hot water.

"The storm surge was worse than predicted," Stella said. "If we're flooded up to the third floor, imagine what it's like elsewhere."

She continued, "All the food is soaked. Who knows what's left on the surface? And with the water level this high, gyms and libraries are probably underwater, too. The government will probably have to commandeer hotels or office buildings as shelters."

Crowding into a shelter was a problem in itself; feeding and housing everyone would be a nightmare. Even after the hurricane had passed, the torrential rain continued. The flood could last for months.

In her previous life, many people from lower floors had moved to the shelter, but returned after a few days, saying that the conditions were overcrowded and unbearable. There was looting, theft, fights - it was chaos.

The government had to provide disaster relief but also had to find food. In the end, they had to fish for food underwater, but after soaking for so long, the food was spoiled.

her heart but decided to go check things out anyway. Who knew,

next door. Rosie was improving, which was a relief

relief efforts. Stella tried to cheer her up. "It's okay, we'll just have to

hope, didn't

the rain didn't stop - instead, it got worse. The sky was ominously dark. By five in the evening, it was dark, and the hurricane had mostly passed. The

then set an alarm every hour from ten in the

evacuating those with no shelter. Sunrise Sanctuary was eerily silent, save for the sound of

similar to a thermal shirt. She took a

onto a narrow platform and, in the darkness, pulled out an inflatable boat.

rain was heavy, and the current strong. The city was unrecognizable; only the tall buildings remained above the water, creating

two hours to reach the large supermarket she had visited before the hurricane. The supermarket had only two floors, but it was on higher ground, so the floors were higher than those in residential buildings. The floodwaters barely reached the second

inflatable boat on the driveway. After securing the boat, she followed the driveway to the rooftop parking

their cars on the rooftop

model. The body and windows were bulletproof,

post-apocalyptic world where fuel was scarce, this RV