18 Floors Above the Apocalypse

Chapter 576

Good news-Reagan had finally come around.

But he was as weak as a newborn calf, barely able to say a word.

Emily was right there, fussing over him like a mother hen. "Stella, I can't thank you enough for the medicine."

"Just doing what I can," Stella said, handing over a steaming bowl of chicken soup. "Uncle Hugh's as weak as a leaf, and porridge won't cut it. Luckily, the farm's chickens were ready for the coop, so I cooked one up especially."

Emily knew too well that porridge was about as nourishing as a wet paper towel compared to a hearty potato stew.

The aroma of the soup was tantalizing. Even someone of Reagan's stature hadn't had a taste in years.

Knowing her husband needed strength, Emily didn't hesitate. She figured she'd return the favor with a gift once her husband was on the mend.

Carefully, she spoon-fed him.

After a few comforting words, Stella got to her feet, suggesting Emily should drop by the farm whenever she could to pick up some chickens and help Uncle Hugh regain his strength.

Exiting the intensive care unit, the pair carried another bowl of chicken soup toward the monitoring room.

Nicholas was gone. Mrs. Shaw was there, a symphony of sobs escaping her as she kept vigil by her son's side.

After receiving medicine, Nicholas had woken up the night before, but he was in a

bad way.

He wasn't out of the woods yet, and from all the tests, it seemed the fever had triggered meningitis.

Even before the calamity, meningitis was a notorious killer, and without antibiotics, the survival rate was abysmal.

Nicholas had brain damage, his hearing gone, and he kept vomiting.

was often irreversible, and even with antibiotics to stave off the worst, life could

short, they had to brace

happening? The meds

"Please, Mrs. Shaw, every patient is

"You must have

they were administered. As for the traditional remedies, they were duplicated,

with Nicholas, a man

still, they

a thread, Mrs. Shaw

the medicine. What are you

had just stepped into the doorway, kicked the door open, her face

Stella, was about to scold this brash intruder

went pale

fabric and a healthy glow, it

not expected Stella to appear at the hospital, and her offhand accusation had reached

after all, was the daughter of a high-ranking official,

Stella cut her off cold, "Mrs. Shaw, you can mess up your diet,

Space for explanations,

Stella left no space

no doctor. It was Nicholas

respect for his service to the country and

people oversaw the process, and the hospital vetted the

the nation's top physician stood here, he wouldn't

on the ground. The clay floor held, but the soup

Shaw hadn't expected such ferocity from Stella and

stormed off, and Mrs. Shaw, torn between following her and attending to her vomiting son, could only stamp her foot in frustration before

and ran into Nicholas, who had come hurrying over. She didn't

faces. Across the street at the police station, the officers were escorting a group back-young men in their twenties, older

clothes torn,

take