18 Floors Above the Apocalypse novel Chapter 305

Jasper remained the picture of calm, "Everyone's got a bit of a gambler in them. Remember when you hoarded those cruise ships and yachts? Weren't you gambling too?"

"I'm not like them," Stella rubbed her temples, her voice weary. "I have my little tricks up my sleeve with Arcadia. I can hide when danger strikes, but they've only got their skin and bones."

This was sheer madness.

"But this is their choice," Jasper said calmly. "Kitty's always been in this game, Angela's been through a family tragedy, and Lukas and Cody have had their share of agony."

Policing the streets was always a gamble with their lives; this time, they were just upping the ante.

"They bust their backs and can only afford to live in the slums. When they owned a home, but they were crammed in tiny apartments, only to have their peace shattered by thugs at nightfall. Now they're all holed up in your place, while we're living it up in our mansion, feasting on steak and sipping fine wine. How could they possibly stay cool-headed?"

It wasn't about envy or resentment. They were just ordinary survivors who had weathered five years of calamities. Who wouldn't have some psychological scars?

Backed into a corner, they were indeed risking their lives.

Lost the bet, and it's a worthless life gone. If they won, it's a life of glory and wealth.

Jasper made sense, and Stella, if she failed to understand them, would have bluntly stopped them rather than urging them to think twice.

In the end, it boiled down to the concern of a friend, feeble though it may be. It wasn't right to feast while telling them to be content with porridge and not to gamble with their lives for a better tomorrow. It was easy to talk without bearing the pain.

However, watching friends you had grown up with gamble with their lives, knowing full well they might die, was heart-wrenching.

"Stella, everyone has their way of living," Jasper said, taking her hand. "As friends, we don't want them risking their lives, but if they've made up their minds, we really can't stop them."

...

After two days of anxious waiting, Cody finally radioed in. "Stella, the four of us scouted the mountains thoroughly. There's a group of over fifty up there. We've thought it through and made a plan. We've decided to go through with it."

He paused, a hint of laughter in his voice. "If we don't make it back, we'll accept our fate."

Just as the line was about to go dead, Stella spoke up, "Wait."

She wouldn't join them, but as a friend, she could offer some help to increase their odds of coming back alive. "I'll find some bulletproof vests. Jasper can whip up some explosives and incendiaries. Find a way to come and get them. And remember, survive at all costs."

Cody was silent for a while before replying, "We've got vests, but we're short on ammo. Consider it a loan from you. If we win, we'll repay with supplies. If we lose, well, if there's an afterlife, we'll repay you then."

After the call, Stella rubbed her face vigorously, taking deep breaths to calm herself.

As she began to prepare lunch, a knock came from downstairs. Looking from the balcony, to her surprise, she found the Porras family's Rolls-Royce, with Derick standing beside it.

The Rolls was Shane's. What could they want at a time like this?

Stella went down to open the door. Derick held the car door open, "Stella, Mr. Porras would like to see you."

Shane had come in person.

Stella, puzzled but courteous, got into the car. "What brings you to my doorstep?"

Shane looked worn, aged several years in a moment. Once the soul of Griffith's business world and a national tycoon, even after five years of disasters, his presence and poise remained. "Stella, have you heard about my son's kidnapping?"