18 Floors Above the Apocalypse

Chapter 376

Stella spotted him too-no doubt about it, he was a beggar. Dressed in tattered rags, barefoot, and wandering aimlessly. "Another soul driven mad by the apocalypse," she sighed to herself.

Just as she was reflecting, the sound of a car caught the beggar's attention. Surprisingly, he turned and waved frantically to flag it down. "Robbery tactics are getting more and more creative," she thought. "This guy could very well be a decoy for an ambush."

Stella cocked her gun, ready to take him down if he showed any sign of threat.

"Hey, stop the car, stop the car!" the beggar shouted.

Stella scanned the area but saw no sign of an ambush.

Jasper didn't hit the brakes and just drove past.

"Damn it, stop!" the beggar yelled, flipping them the bird.

Stella squinted, recognizing the figure in the rearview mirror.

"Stop the car," she commanded.

Seeing the truck pull over, the beggar's mood swung from irritation to hope. He limped over and asked, "Buddy, could you give me a lift?"

He hurried over but froze in shock when he got a better look.

It was like a bucket of ice water had been dumped over him in the dead of winter.

Without a word, he covered his face and turned to leave.

"Bran," Stella called out.

It was as if his heart had been pierced; his entire body stiffened.

His dignity, once guarded, now trampled into the mud.

But Stella didn't mock him or ask how he'd come to this. "Get in. We're still a good ten miles from the base. If you walk, your feet will be shredded."

reduced to a destitute beggar by natural disasters. Fate had a cruel sense of

Bran had to settle for sitting on a pile of muddy

true. But what could he do? He climbed aboard, the truck bouncing him all

atop a pile of garbage, numb to

the base and drove up to

trading, and

and after weighing,

steel could sustain a

questions about where the

plan to keep the credits. She went straight to the base's store

pods, these ten packs

case of a real-life Robinson Crusoe situation, it was better to

save up and buy a whole load at once, for the day when it might come in

other supplies, aside from a submarine, Stella had almost everything

on the road, the family was eager to return home

a word, probably a matter

inwardly, not sure what

way back to

her head out, "Hey, Bran. You left some meds with me a while back. With things as chaotic as they are, I can't keep

was taken aback, not expecting the usually covetous Stella to

"Uh, later," he mumbled.

We'll probably head out scavenging again after a short break. Wouldn't

Bran merely nodded, "Mhm."

him the address to the compound and exchanging goodbyes without much

his

their dog enjoyed a luxurious meal after

of home-cooked food after days on

full and dishes cleared by Rosie, Stella sipped on juice while discussing with Jasper, "Remember when the Porras family's annex got hit by that satellite? Bran gave us a lot of meds as thanks. I think he added extra as a gesture of goodwill. Now that he's hit rock bottom, I'm thinking of returning the surplus.

family had left in a hurry, probably all in Goldbridge except Bran. With all the disasters,

of military skills and his prideful nature, asking him to do hard labor for food was out of the

had turned to scavenging, a dangerous and

to a pitiful