18 Floors Above the Apocalypse

Chapter 367

Tom's punch landed hard, and the young boy's lip split, blood trickling down as his head spun in confusion and pain.

Facing his father's blazing eyes, he clutched his cheek, too terrified to say another word in his defense.

Tom took several deep breaths, trying to calm himself, before bowing deeply to the crowd. "Everyone, I'm truly sorry. It seems I've failed as a father, causing all this trouble. Please accept my deepest apologies."

The crowd's anger simmered, but they knew the fault lay with the spoiled brat, not the refugee camp that had saved so many lives, including theirs. The camp leader had always been at the forefront of rescue efforts, even braving the rain to offer comfort. He was a good man; it was just his son who had gone astray. After a moment's thought, and despite their grievances, no one wanted to escalate things further.

Stella wasn't looking for a fight, especially since the camp was filled with Tom's people. Picking a real fight would only put her at a disadvantage due to their numbers.

She turned to Rosie, "Did they hurt you?"

Rosie shook her head, "No."

Stella relented, "Alright, for the sake of my sister-in-law being unharmed, I'll let this slide. But if there's a next time, I won't be so forgiving."

Tom thanked her, then turned to his son and slapped him twice more. "You ungrateful brat, apologize now!"

Under his father's stern gaze, Hunter braced himself and muttered, "I'm sorry."

Stella responded coldly, "I can't hear you. Say it louder."

sorry!" he repeated, though

to ignore it, allowing

and the others breathed a sigh of relief and asked with concern,

head, her

tough; he'll be okay. He's probably just

break down just outside the city. It took a while to fix, and

journey, they were accosted by a group of desperate refugees blocking the road. The entire village had banded together for safety and surrounded their car, throwing stones and attempting to overturn it, all to force them out. Kitty, in desperation, floored the gas pedal, hoping to break through, but the engine failed to start again. As their windows shattered, Cody fired shots, taking down

they were forced out and had to fight back with whatever weapons they had. Then, suddenly, a sandstorm hit. Cody and Lukas, being closer to the car, scrambled inside to seek shelter from the storm. The vehicle was flipped, and they clung on to their supplies for

and managed to survive. After the sandstorm abated, they sought each other out, despite their pain. They found each other first, but then torrential rain brought mudslides, and they were trapped by a river, eventually straying further in the

Jasper and Cooper were unaccounted for. The camp had disbanded, but their search could continue. They were determined to find Jasper and Cooper. Despite his injured ankle, Cody was resolute. "Yeah, together we're stronger. We'll split up and

Jasper's injuries were severe; he needed the best care, and traveling with the group

all hurt and should be resting,

"Stella, are you saying we're a

days to recover from a bone injury.' If I let you go out there all battered and bruised, you might end up in worse shape than when we started." Angela insisted, "Friends don't keep score. Besides, you and Jasper have done so much for us. How could we rest

days and heard a rumor that survivors saw someone resembling Jasper heading west. I'm not sure if it's true or why he'd go that way, but I want to take Rosie and see if we can find him and Cooper. Luckily, I

reeling from his concussion, struggled to stand without feeling dizzy or nauseous. After days of hardship, every one of them was frail and couldn't afford more strain. Yet the thought of Stella scouring the earth for

saved Rosie earlier and protected her again today. That's more than enough help. Look after yourselves; we

separation was a luxury. Stella looked at her lifelong friends,

her in farewell. "Stella, whether or not we