18 Floors Above the Apocalypse novel Chapter 396

However, Julia, who prided herself on having every angle covered, had failed to account for one critical factor – herself.

The patrolling soldiers were just regular grunts, never getting the chance to even see the top brass, let alone their wives and daughters. In the many years since the catastrophe had reshaped the world, even the most secure stronghold like the Kindle Society saw its fair share of folks driven mad by the brutal conditions of survival. Some claimed they were fairy-tale characters; others believed they were gods. The most vocal were those who fancied themselves as the base commanders, the rulers of their little domains!

A warning for such delusions was usually enough, but a repeat offense was treated as an assault on a soldier. Attempting to snatch a weapon? That was a cardinal sin!

The offended soldier showed no mercy, executing a clean judo throw that sent the emotionally compromised Julia crashing to the ground. With a smack that echoed the futile attempt of an egg against a rock – she shattered. Julia's eyes rolled back as she felt her insides churn from the impact, the pain nearly knocking her unconscious. Lillian fared no better. In an instant, she was pinned against the glass by a soldier, "Cool it, lady!"

Onlookers were stunned. How come the ones getting beaten were the ones caught by the soldiers? But it seemed to make sense – after all, they were the ones who had lost their minds and grabbed for the soldiers' weapons. It was like ruining a perfect hand in poker through sheer ignorance.

Lillian could never have imagined being manhandled by a rank-and-file soldier; she was the base commander's wife, for crying out loud! Were they blind and deaf? How dare they! How dare they indeed!

Stella watched with a wry smile, as if observing a monkey perform tricks. Ah, scheming – who wasn't capable of that?

Enraged and humiliated, Lillian struggled violently, her eyes blazing with hatred as she fixed her gaze on Stella, "I am the commander's wife! She's the murderer! We're the victims here!"

Seeing her frenzy, the soldier tightened his grip. A scream echoed as Lillian's arm was dislocated, limply hanging by her side. After subduing the two out-of-control survivors, one of the soldiers approached Stella, "What's the situation here? Who threw the first punch?"

Stella admitted honestly, "I did."

The soldier's expression grew stern, "Why?"

Stella glanced toward Julia, "This woman has been colluding with the scavengers, the Whirlwind Crew, bribing thugs from outside to ambush us on coal transport routes. We were lucky to escape, and when we came back to confront her, she flatly denied everything. I lost my temper and that's why I struck her."

Disturbances at the base were categorized by severity. Minor brawls could get you expelled, but nothing serious enough to warrant immediate execution. Stella's move seemed impulsive, but in reality, it was a trap for Julia and her mother. With the submarine secured, Stella was willing to gamble with being expelled from the base to take down Julia and her mother – a bet well worth the risk. She was curious: would Daniel protect this viperous mother and daughter? If he did, she'd accept her loss without much damage. If he acted by the book, they'd be kicked out of the base, and she could deal with them later. Either way, Stella wouldn't lose out.

"Do you have any proof of her plotting to kill you?"

"I do. Witnesses are in the trunk of my car, all tied up and brought back," Stella said, pulling out a voice recorder. "This woman's gone off the deep end, threatening people to do her dirty work, and got recorded without realizing it."