18 Floors Above the Apocalypse

Chapter 384

By the end of the day, Julia still couldn't shake the feeling that Daniel resented her mother for remarrying and raising her with another man. It left a bad taste in her mouth.

She doubted he genuinely accepted her and her mother. With his high-ranking position, he didn't need their company. Bringing them in was probably just his way of settling an old score, payback for being abandoned.

As a prominent official, Daniel had no shortage of women. With a mere flick of his finger, a line of young, beautiful ladies would be at his beck and call. Her mother wasn't exactly a spring chicken, just a widow who sought him out after her husband's death. If she were Daniel, she'd be disgusted too.

What really got under Julia's skin was that ever since they joined the Kindle Society, her mother had been completely wrapped up in Daniel, not giving a second thought to her daughter's future.

Daniel wanted her to enlist, and despite knowing Julia couldn't handle the rigor, her mother still took his side.

Julia asked for a cushy job, but Daniel wouldn't pull any strings, and her mother defended him, saying a man of his stature had to lead by example.

In the end, it seemed a daughter could never compete with a man.

The irony was, her mother was still hopelessly in love, while Daniel couldn't care less.

Unaware of her daughter's thoughts, Lillian massaged her temples in frustration. "Stella again, causing endless trouble?"

Stella had always been her bane. If Lillian had known it would come to this, she would have risked an abortion rather than giving birth to this contrarian curse.

Julia wanted to grab hold of her chances, but her would-be suitor had walked away mid-conversation. Was she supposed to cling to him like some desperate siren?

from experience. "It's just a thin veil between a woman chasing a man. If he agreed to the match, he's either interested in you or in leveraging your

hesitation. "But he didn't even leave his contact

up

charge. Soldiers may be a bit dense, but they're reliable. If he dares to shirk responsibility, the base will have your back. What's there to fear? He won't have a

daughter was catching on, Lillian smiled contentedly. "Yes, be smart about it, and I'll be there to

in a reverie of the days when she first fell for Daniel, a time of innocence and bliss long gone-now just a memory, marred by the catastrophic times that had disfigured them both, leaving only their scarred shells. Julia retreated to her room, tossing and turning in her bed, unable to sleep as Stella's face

She hated her!

and stripping away her dignity. And now she had the nerve to show up at the base, shaming her in public and threatening to usurp

without the status of Daniel's daughter, Julia had no chance of survival, let alone securing a

everything, Stella was a ticking time

to go. She had to die. There

it, the more her face twisted in malice. "Stella, I swear I'll

blissfully unaware of Julia's venomous thoughts as

she muttered, "Someone must be talking behind

around her, Jasper

Stella agreed, sure that Julia

even the scavengers didn't dare to cross lines, let alone

years. Yet, she couldn't help but wonder how Julia

military families were given job preference-no doubt Julia had used her connections to land a job many would envy. Stella chuckled at the thought of Julia throwing herself at the young,

of his drunken rants to Austin, boasting about his past romantic escapades-from celebrities to models, he

to me, so annoying. You have no idea, man. She tried so hard to hook me that her whole family got involved, threw pool parties in the scorching heat, stripping down right in