18 Floors Above the Apocalypse novel Chapter 16

Angela invited Stella to come downstairs and check out the situation. The flour was all gone, and though there was still a bag of rice, the gas had run out. All they had left was a few pieces of alcohol briquettes.

To conserve energy, they'd soak rice first, pour boiling water into a thermos, let the rice sit until it was cooked, and then eat it.

If they could, Angela and Lukas would go to the emergency shelter. The conditions wouldn't be great, but at least there would be enough to eat and hot water.

"The storm surge was worse than predicted," Stella said. "If we're flooded up to the third floor, imagine what it's like elsewhere."

She continued, "All the food is soaked. Who knows what's left on the surface? And with the water level this high, gyms and libraries are probably underwater, too. The government will probably have to commandeer hotels or office buildings as shelters."

Crowding into a shelter was a problem in itself; feeding and housing everyone would be a nightmare. Even after the hurricane had passed, the torrential rain continued. The flood could last for months.

In her previous life, many people from lower floors had moved to the shelter, but returned after a few days, saying that the conditions were overcrowded and unbearable. There was looting, theft, fights - it was chaos.

The government had to provide disaster relief but also had to find food. In the end, they had to fish for food underwater, but after soaking for so long, the food was spoiled.

Angela felt a heavy weight in her heart but decided to go check things out anyway. Who knew, there might have been good news.

Stella didn't go. She went to check on Rosie next door. Rosie was improving, which was a relief for her, an amateur doctor.

An hour later, Angela returned, looking defeated. The fire department was only rescuing people whose homes had been flooded, and they had no information about large-scale relief efforts. Stella tried to cheer her up. "It's okay, we'll just have to rely on ourselves."

Angela agreed, trying to rekindle her hope. "The hurricane has passed, maybe the heavy rain will stop soon."

Living required hope, didn't it?

But the rain didn't stop - instead, it got worse. The sky was ominously dark. By five in the evening, it was dark, and the hurricane had mostly passed. The city was eerily silent, save for the sound of rescue boats.

Stella ate an early dinner, then set an alarm every hour from ten in the evening.

Around one o’clock in the morning, the fire department finished evacuating those with no shelter. Sunrise Sanctuary was eerily silent, save for the sound of rain.

Stella put on her stab-resistant suit and felt the material. It felt similar to a thermal shirt. She took a knife and tried to cut the sample fabric - it didn't tear. The quality was top-notch.