18 Floors Above the Apocalypse

Chapter 293

Yanking open the blackout curtains, Stella flicked on every light.

Silence prevailed outside the window. Even with the house ablaze with artificial daylight, an unsettling restlessness seeped into the room.

Stella picked up the walkie-talkie to get in touch with Cody's team.

Kitty picked up. She was out patrolling with Angela.

They were all adults, and if they insisted on working throughout this eternal night, they must have considered the risks. Stella chatted briefly, reminding them to stay safe, and then hung up.

While all friends, their living conditions varied greatly. Given the choice, no one would choose to venture out. It was best not to criticize from a place of comfort.

After two hours of reading medical books, she sparred with Jasper, breaking a good sweat which made her feel much better.

She took some hot spring water from the pantry, poured it into a bathtub, and soaked in it for 40 minutes on a constant temperature setting.

Meanwhile, Jasper was busy training his little sister and Cooper.

The lights in the backyard greenhouse remained on. The rabbits, having experienced extreme cold before, were not much affected by the temperature drop. The chickens, ducks, and geese huddled together for warmth.

Rosie looked slightly upset. "Jasper, they didn't lay any eggs today."

Jasper reassured her. "It's too cold and there's no sunlight. They'll get used to it after a while."

Cold as it was, they still needed to feed the animals well to keep them warm. They couldn't skimp on the mixed grain feed.

He had rigged a heating pipe in the greenhouse, which could be turned on when the temperature dropped further at night, helping the animals survive the long nights.

During the eternal night, they didn’t have much to do and tend to go to bed early. Just as Stella was about to sleep, the walkie-talkie suddenly blared, "Stella."

Just as she was wondering where Monkey got the walkie-talkie, it turned out to be Bran.

Stella was puzzled. "How did you know the channel?"

"Don't worry about how I know, just know that I do." His voice was smug. Bran sat there, legs crossed, playing with his slippers. "Do you need anything? Want me to send some stuff over?"

"No need." She'd be grateful if he just left her alone.

"How about coming over for a game of poker?" Bran suggested, bored enough to count leg hair. "I can bring Buddy over too."

Buddy was his dopey Mastiff. If it weren't for Buddy's loyalty, Bran would have been torn to pieces by the mountain cannibals long ago.

Stella didn't know what to say to him. "Can you stop annoying me?"

"No, I'm really bored. I'm about to die of boredom."

With the eternal night preventing outdoor activities, people were stuck seeing their family all the time. His family was sick of him and the other local elites only knew how to flatter. His cousin

Bentley was constantly wallowing in heartbreak. He was so bored he was contemplating suicide, hence his pestering of Stella.

Anyway, with the eternal night going on, she couldn't exactly storm into the Porras household to beat him up, could she?

"Thanks to your reminder, my family just finished building a high wall yesterday. Who knew the eternal night would come today."

Stella's hint had prompted him to consult with his father.

His father had the solution. He made a donation of food to the police station, and they agreed to station two officers at the Porras household.

They were just two officers, and their skills were not even on par with bodyguards, but the Porras family needed their deterrent effect, to show everyone that the Porras family was a primary protection target for the authorities. Anyone who dared to mess with them could give it a try.

Stella wondered why the other households didn't have high walls too.

Stella didn't want to listen to his chatter. Just as she was about to hang up the walkie-talkie, she hesitated for a moment and said. "Don't open the door easily. Not even for the neighborhood security."

Favors wore thin with every use. She had nearly paid off the debt for the three top-of-the-line off- road vehicles had nearly paid off their debt. Plus, Cooper’s sidekick, was still in the Porras household.

During the polar day, just closing the curtains would do. There would be no risk as long as they stayed within the neighborhood. But the eternal night was different. Evil was like omnipresent darkness, and you never knew when danger would pop up from a hidden corner.

Even the people who usually greeted you with a smile might reveal a ferocious face in the dark and raise a butcher's knife without hesitation.

The mental oppression was unbearable.

Cody switched on the walkie-talkie. "Stella, are you and Jasper alright?"

The sound of smashing and crashing filled the background, coming from places near and far.

"We're fine. What about you guys?"

"Stay safe and don't come out unless necessary." Cody sounded worried, panting heavily. "It's chaos out there. They're looting and rioting everywhere."

It had only been three days, but the spread of chaos was as rapid as a zombie outbreak in a movie.

At first, it was just the criminal underworld causing havoc. But soon, the victims of the criminals, wearing masks and wielding kitchen knives, began to attack their fellow sufferers.

The eternal night had unleashed the darkest and most brutal aspects of human nature, evil spreading faster than a virus.

The fastest to collapse were the slums. Swarms of people poured out, smashing streetlights, breaking windows, wielding iron rods and storming one residential building after another.

The police had been prepared, but they were overwhelmed. They had recruited many more officers and patrols, but they were like driftwood in a storm when faced with the rioting mob. Copyright by Nôv/elDrama.Org.

It was crucial not to wear a uniform, or you would be the first target.

Many people fell in pools of blood, never to rise again.

Stella felt a tight knot in her chest. "Focus on keeping yourselves safe. Don't act heroically."

"We're fine." Cody reassured her. "The police are swamped. The mob will probably reach your area soon, so be careful."

His voice was drowned out by a horrific scream. Stella sprang up, heading for the rooftop.

"Stella, what's happening?"

"It's chaos here too." Stella hurriedly hung up the walkie-talkie. "We have a high wall and an electric fence. The rioters won't dare to target us first."

She put on night vision goggles and rushed to the rooftop.

The screams were coming from Building 32, still quite a distance from Building 50. Stella used her binoculars and saw a dozen rioters armed with weapons running out, dressed in security guard uniforms.

A young girl in a lacy nightdress ran out barefoot, only to be dragged back in by a man who grabbed her by the hair. Stella vaguely remembered her. She seemed to be Julia's best friend, who had been very vocal during the alpaca incident.

That was right. Her brother was the one who had assaulted the head security guard.

The captain, surrounded by a few guards, walked in with an uncompromising stride. He took a baseball bat from one of the guards and beat the young man savagely, leaving him bloody and battered, then forced him to crawl on all fours.

The young man wept as he complied, but the captain showed him no mercy. He broke his arms and legs one after the other, then directed a few security guards to drag him into a room.