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."

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

in the cab, so Bran had to settle for sitting on a pile of muddy

what could he do? He climbed aboard, the truck

set, the fallen rich kid sat atop a pile of garbage, numb to the jostling of the

entered the base and drove up

and cashing in

time to clean, and after weighing, they earned 3000

could sustain a family

no prying questions about where the steel came from, which eased

She went straight to the base's store and bought

pods, these ten packs could

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

save up and buy a

aside from a submarine, Stella had

the road, the family was eager to return home and clean

word, probably a

a deep breath inwardly, not sure what

the way back to their private

left some meds with me a while back. With things as chaotic as they are, I can't

usually covetous Stella to offer the

"Uh, later," he mumbled.

out scavenging again

Bran merely nodded, "Mhm."

compound and

feeling his

the compound, the trio and their dog

of home-cooked food

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

family had left in a hurry, probably all in Goldbridge except Bran. With all the disasters, looking after their golden boy

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

of necessity, he had turned to scavenging,

by beauty and luxury, now reduced to a pitiful state, it was a poignant reminder of the