18 Floors Above the Apocalypse

Chapter 56

Stella knew it was Katie who had sent Mikey to bring her news. Although it didn't make much difference, she appreciated the effort. As a reward, she waived the fees for three treatment sessions, and gifted her half a bottle of soothing whiskey.

Although it was only 50mL, in the post-apocalyptic world they now lived in, it was quite a generous gift.

Of course, Stella didn't rule out the chance that there was an ulterior motive. After all, everyone had their eyes on the 18th floor, and it was never wise to assume the best of people. If the Moore family was willing to share information, it could save her a lot of trouble. "Katie, it's getting colder these days. Your lower back should not be exposed to cold or dampness. Use the whiskey to massage it at night, and then wrap yourself up in a quilt. It'll heal faster."

In her previous life, Katie had died from the cold, leaving only Mikey behind, but he didn't last much longer. If Katie took Stella's advice this time, she might survive.

"Thank you, Stella. I'll give it a try tonight."

She introduced a new patient to Stella. "The family living above me, their son has eczema all over his body. He's scratched himself raw, and the hospital trip was a waste since they had no medication. They want to bring their son here for treatment. They don't know you well, so they didn't dare to come directly. They asked me to speak to you first. Don't worry, they're good people. They don't associate with Drew and his crew, and they didn't join in the intimidation attempt a few days ago." Eczema was a complex condition, and acupuncture alone wouldn't cure it. Herbal remedies took time to work.

Stella had medication in her Arcadia, but she wasn't going to give it away. "This condition is difficult to treat without medication. Try to sweat more to detoxify, and by improving the immune system, it'll get better over time."

Katie didn't push the issue. She wrapped the bottle of whiskey in cloth and put it in her pocket, so that others wouldn't get a smell of it and become suspicious.

"Stella, did your dog bite a boy?" Katie asked as she was leaving. "The girl next door is stirring up trouble again. I can tell they're not happy about it."

Young people these days were so complicated. They claimed to be friends, but they talked behind each other's backs, always craving for what others had.

During the recent attack on the 18th floor, several men had participated, and instead of reflecting on their actions, they were badmouthing Stella behind her back. If she were Stella, even if she did have supplies, she'd rather feed them to her dog than give them to these ingrates.

After Katie left, Stella went back into Arcadia, and harvested the vegetables from her black soil garden.

stool to dig out the potatoes. The soil in Arcadia was fertile,

eat potato tops, so Stella had to throw them into Arcadia to use

potatoes and moving the pots back into the black soil garden, she heard

in what looked like armor, returned from the trip, standing proudly at the door, carrying two black plastic bags in his mouth. The others were carrying firewood, and apart from the stern Jasper, everyone else was smiling. Cooper raised his paw, his black eyes shining brightly. What was

the fish. There was no doubt about it, Cooper had been in the water

heavy bags from him, she patted Cooper's head in praise.

The other bag contained two wild rabbits, which Cooper had dug out of their burrows on the mountain. After changing into dry clothes, everyone gathered

they had ventured towards the previous villa cluster. There wasn't much to be found in the villas; they

the current and were swimming in the mountain streams. The water was muddy, and they couldn't see the fish with their naked eyes. It was Cooper who had discovered

fast. Supplies in the city were scarce, and it was likely that others would start searching in the mountains soon. If the reservoir

dangers, it wasn't feasible for Cooper to catch the

we

but they

can you make

"Sorry, I can't."

reservoir of fish? Stella was drooling at the thought. She only had 100

to me that her grandson Mikey works at the Physics Research Institute. I wonder if

machine relied on ultrasonic waves, which Mikey should be familiar

"Can he

and Mikey is

Everyone else agreed. After all, the Moore family didn't know where