18 Floors Above the Apocalypse novel Chapter 276

Angela could never have fathomed the hidden truth behind her parents' death. They hadn't succumbed to a heat stroke; they had been starved to death.

The children, frightened into submission, spilled everything.

No one could have predicted the calamity would last this long. At first, there was peace in the family, but soon, greed took over.

The eldest brother accused the younger of eating more than his share, while the younger suspected the elder of hoarding warm clothes. In the end, they each resorted to dipping into their parents' life supplies.

Reluctantly, the family divided. Deprived of compassion, they manipulated and exploited their parents, leaving them without any supplies. Each brother felt wronged, blaming their parents for being selfish and not evenly splitting their resources.

Guarding their separate stashes of food, neither brother stepped down, allowing their parents to starve to death. But they had their pride, and so they fabricated a more respectable cause for their parents' deaths.

Angela, upon learning the truth, lost her mind. She stormed into her brother's house, beating the life out of them. Had military personnel not intervened, there might have been casualties.

During the chaos and emotional turmoil, Angela miscarried, bleeding profusely. Fortunately, there was a doctor at the base camp who managed to save her life. But due to lack of medicine for immediate treatment, she developed repeated infections, and her once robust health took a severe hit. To add to the complications, Angela was evicted from the base due to the violent nature of her actions.

With no other choice, the trio was forced to return to Griffith to scrape out a living. In order to survive, they had to resort to their old ways.

Stella could only sigh at their fate. They had left with hope, only to return battered and bruised.

Lukas had to continue his patrols and couldn't stay in the vehicle for too long. With a bitter laugh, he stepped out and walked away.

Before he went too far, he turned back and said, "Forgot to tell you, Cody found a partner."

Stella blinked, "Is she old lady?"

"We were scavenging when he saved a lady. In gratitude, she invited us for dinner and ended up getting a bit too drunk and slept with Cody."

The lady seemed to enjoy it and so, Cody and she were together for a while.

"She's three years older than him. Quite capable, used to lead a team. When the team grew too big and unruly, she decided to go lone wolf."

Probably tired of being alone, she started sleeping with men.

"It's been over six months, but she hasn't made any commitments. No one knows how much longer it will last."

Lukas gave Stella an address, suggesting she should visit sometime.

As Lukas' figure receded in the distance, Stella sat in the car for a while before driving home. Upon her arrival, her dog bounded out, frantically pawing at her.

Jasper came downstairs, "What happened? You're late."

"Nothing, I just dropped Dr. Collin off at Swan Hill." Stella paused, "On the way back, I ran into Lukas."

Lukas? Jasper was surprised. Shouldn't she be happy to see an old friend? Instead, she seemed troubled.

"Did something happen to them?"

Sitting on the sofa, Stella recounted the story.

Jasper listened, his expression calm. "In times of disaster, every lower-class family will go through this. Even if Angela's parents hadn't died, their family would have had to face this situation eventually."

Parents, siblings, nieces, and nephews, not everyone can withstand the tests of the apocalypse.

Jasper held her hand, "Everyone has their own path. We just need to take care of ourselves."