As soon as Stella stepped into the apartment building, it didn't take long for people to notice the dog. Suddenly, their mouths watered at the prospect of a meaty meal.
Cooper, the dog, bristled and bared his teeth. His eyes were filled with a killer's intent. Stella brandished her sword. "Who wants to eat my dog? Step forward."
Shock rippled through the crowd. Since when was there a dog on the 18th floor?
The audacity! They didn't even have anything to eat, and yet the people of the 18th floor wanted to keep a dog! Were they feeding the scarce food to a dog instead of them?
In an instant, anger surged in their hearts.
"Nonsense, that's a stray from outside." An astute observer recognized Cooper. "He often hangs around outside the complex. I've seen him several times."
"That's right, I've seen him a few times too. Once, he almost bit my kid."
"Let's kill him, and we can all share."
With a swift motion, Stella sliced the nearby trash can to pieces with her sword. "If you want to eat meat," she challenged, "you'll have to ask my knife for permission."
Recalling her swift, head-chopping skills, the crowd took a few steps back in fear. Yet, some were still discontent. "Lady, this dog ain't yours, you can't be so domineering."
"If he's with me, he's mine."
"Look, we're all struggling here. How about this, we kill it and give you half, and we split the rest."
Others nodded in agreement. "That sounds fair. She takes the biggest share, and we'll be happy with some soup."
"I don't like dog meat," Stella sneered, swinging her knife towards the man who proposed the idea, "But your meat should be pretty good!"
"Ah...!" The man stumbled back in fear, falling onto the floor, and wetting his pants in terror.
Damn, Stella was ready to kill.
Fortunately, he wasn't critically hit, but his arm was slashed open and was bleeding profusely.
Seeing this, even the most disgruntled among them didn't dare to ask for meat again and could only watch as Stella led the dog upstairs.
Just as Stella managed to fend off those who wanted to eat Cooper, Hector was ready to stir the pot. "Stella, you're really cold-hearted!" He burst out of his room, fuming at Stella. "Are you satisfied now? Ken is dead!"
The others stood by the door, staring at Stella with vicious eyes. No one tried to intervene.
Before Stella could say anything, Cooper lunged and bit Hector's leg. Caught off guard, Hector let out a deafening scream and swung his stick at Cooper's head.
Agilely avoiding the blow, Cooper's eyes were filled with murderous intent.
This was the man! Before, he hated Cooper and said Cooper was always dirty and stinking of fleas, that it wasn't a surprise that someone would want to throw him into a butchery. Because of this man, Stella had cut off his food supply and ignored him ever since.
Holding a grudge, the dog attacked again.
Hector was shocked and scared. He waved his stick frantically.
Stella stepped in, forcing Hector to step back with a swift strike of her knife.
"Stella, you're hitting me for a dog?" Hector was angry, and his face revealed a savage anger. "Have you gone mad? It's just a dog."
"It's a dog, but you're not a man."
"You think you're justified in killing Ken?"
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: 18 Floors Above the Apocalypse