18 Floors Above the Apocalypse

Chapter 469

Discussing why Lillian got hurt was enough to give the warden a migraine. "Area F is a madhouse, full of folks with dual diagnoses. Not a single sane soul among them, and the numbers just keep growing. We're fresh out of management strategies," he lamented. These folks might be off their rockers, but they sure knew how to pick on the weaker ones-the meek and the women.

Sure, the wardens were there, but they weren't superhuman. They couldn't keep eyes on every patient all the time, and training or reforming this crowd was a lost cause.

We've got a disciplinary ward, but what good is punishment to someone who's lost their mind?

Lillian was an easy target, bullied by both men and women. The wardens had stepped in more times than they could count. The aggressors, when lucid, would apologize, but in the throes of their illness, they lost all traces of humanity.

And Lillian? She was like wet clay-no form, no resilience. Aside from her constant, delirious cries for Stella, she was passive to a fault.

After several conversations, it was clear to the wardens that Lillian's mental state wasn't as severe as some others. With the right cooperation, she could be healed and moved to Area E.

Area E housed those with physical ailments, mentally more stable than the folks in Area F, where you had to earn your keep to get your meals.

But Lillian was a complex case.

Even in the base, it was a dog-eat-dog world. If the warden were in Lillian's shoes, he'd have fought back against the bullies. After all, they were all in the same sinking ship. Lillian, however, was prone to dodging issues, mistaking her naivety for cleverness, and always pinning her hopes on others. In the end, her reliance on others was her downfall. But as a warden, there were thoughts he kept to himself.

Listening to all this, Stella remained expressionless.

The woman before her was a shadow of her former self, a far cry from the pampered life Lillian once led.

Always depending on someone else.

What was going through Lillian's mind?

Born into a world that didn't want her, tossed into an orphanage, ignored for years, and nearly killed for someone else's gain.

Why couldn't she stop fixating on it?

Julia was her pride and joy, Daniel her knight in shining armor. Why weren't they on her mind now?

Stella watched as Lillian's breath grew ragged.

Lillian reached out, blood smeared across her face, trying to muster a smile. "Ginger... Ginger... I'm sorry... it was me... my fault."

Her arm fell limp, her eyes wide open, never to close again.

In her final moments, Lillian's life flashed before her eyes like a flickering film. She had held on to the hope of her beloved returning. And he did return.

the child, the wedding, and

Stella, I'm sorry.

Daniel, I'm sorry.

had the courage to love but not to

wanted everything but ended up

did have was

glanced at Lillian one last time and walked away, not back to work but out to the hospital entrance for some fresh

she reached the door, along came Bran, huffing

an eyebrow. "Aren't you supposed to

overate last night, still feeling stuffed, so I'm out

him skeptically. "You look more like a starving ghost

"Sis, I'm craving a

if he needed one. The guy

a few stale cigarettes left over. "My brother-in-law's got a couple left. I'll hook you up when I

her. "You're the

rid of you

a little kindness never hurt, especially to someone who'd been like a brother

who I partied

feigned indifference. "Someone

one of them claimed to be a survivor from a transport ship in the Ru Province.

composure, though her heart skipped a

did she expect her past generosity to come back to haunt her at Hope

talking too much. Hans had to

crept up Stella's

I had indigestion, but I guess the

gave Stella a long, penetrating look before waving goodbye.

leave, lost in

things over before seeking out

lunchtime, Jasper was puzzled to see her. "What brings

uneasy as she pulled Jasper aside.

face fell.

the previous night's gathering and the

a

was manageable, but the goods from the fishing boats were

time, and if it weren't for the cargo from the sea floor, Stella might have never considered heading to Hope Point. Circumstances aligned too neatly-the Ru Province

suspected something. If he could piece it together,

over five hundred on the transport alone, dozens