18 Floors Above the Apocalypse
Chapter 265

Stella's hesitation gave the rich kids a chance to react. Seeing one of their own being bullied, they rallied to her defense, saying, "Why did you hit her?" Someone rushed over to help the girl up, asking with concern, "Julia, are you okay?"

When Julia saw Stella's features clearly, she was also taken aback. She had dismissed earlier mentions of a woman in the neighborhood who looked like her. After all, prior to the apocalypse, countless people had undergone plastic surgeries, especially influencers who were often unrecognizable when gathered together.

She thought people were exaggerating, but it turned out to be true. Although they weren't identical, they shared about 50% resemblance. The only difference was that Stella was taller and her gaze was cold and sharp.

Facing the arrogant elites, Stella retorted coldly, "Are you blind? Can't you see she was the one who started it?"

"She didn't mean it. You were too harsh. Plus, your dog is the one who severely injured the alpaca."

"So, I deserved to be spat on by an alpaca?"

Julia explained, "The alpaca didn't mean it. Spitting is its natural defense mechanism."

"It's been three years since the apocalypse, and my natural instinct is to kill. If I kill you now, it's not intentional either, so I can just kill you?"

Julia stubbornly disagreed, "You're being unreasonable. Who saw the alpaca spit on you? Alpacas wouldn't spit without provocation, so you must have threatened it first."

"Yes, call the police. She hit you." The crowd started to agitate, "Arrest her!"

Stella laughed helplessly, "Go ahead. Call the police. I'll wait."

"Security, security." Spotting the patrol team, someone called out arrogantly, "She attacked someone, arrest her and take her to the police."

The patrol team arrived to replace the scene in chaos, with clear divisions among the crowd. They were all homeowners, and the security captain didn't want to offend anyone, "This is an internal dispute among homeowners. You can resolve it peacefully. If that doesn't work, we'll call the police."

The captain knew exactly why the previous team was fired, and Samuel was currently in the team, so he knew something about the residents of unit 50. Moreover, they were hired by the Porras family. As long as the Porras family didn't say anything, it was best to remain impartial.

Seeing the security not cooperating, someone protested, "What's the meaning of this? We pay so much for property management, and this is how you deal with us?"

"Everyone, please calm down, let's sit down and resolve this."

A young man stepped forward and slapped the security captain, "Resolve what? You're just a bunch of cowards who only know how to bend. A guard dog would be more useful than you."

The rich guys didn't dare to lay a hand on the residents of unit 50, but hitting the security was a piece of cake.

The slapped security captain was furious but dared not speak a word, enduring the slap in silence.

"What's happening?" A lazy voice sounded, "Why didn't anyone invite me to this fun?"

Hearing the voice, the crowd parted to make way, "Mr. Bran."

Someone immediately explained, "Mr. Bran, that woman over there has been bullying Julia."

Julia suddenly felt wronged and whined, "Mr. Bran, she's deliberately picking on us to seek revenge."

Stella glared at them. Although she knew to separate personal feelings from business, the thought of the three super off-road vehicles left in Arcadia, and the eighty million pink diamonds swallowed by Arcadia, made her feel somewhat guilty when looking at Bran's gaze. However, she hid it well, and it was gone in a flash. "Really?" Bran raised a smile, his hands in his pockets, "So arrogant?"

Julia's friend added, "Yes, we saw it with our own eyes."

Many people joined in, "Yes, she deliberately attacked the alpaca and let her vicious dog provoke us, she's clearly looking for trouble."

One by one, by the end, everyone was siding with Julia, growing increasingly arrogant.

These poor beggers really thought they could run rampant in the community just because they had beaten up security last time? Did they think everyone else was dead?

Would the Porras family swallow this humiliation?

Bran laughed, his gaze landing on Stella.

Stella was waiting for his move, but he turned to look at Julia and the others instead, "But I saw your alpaca spit at her first."

At his words, everyone's expressions changed. They never expected Bran, who was always arrogant and rude due to his family background, to side with an outsider. They were his people, yet he was siding with a beggar?

Bran looked at Julia, "You knew alpacas spit, so you should have watched it carefully. If you didn't, isn't it only right that you got hit?"

Julia was so embarrassed, she wished she could crawl into a hole. She didn't expect that Bran, who had just returned from the base, would have changed so much.

Stella was equally surprised. She had worked in his car modification club during the summer and knew him to be an arrogant rich kid, but now, it was truly a case of living long enough to see everything.

Or perhaps it was just his erratic mood swings.

Julia had never been so humiliated before, feeling like her dignity had been trampled upon.

Her eyes filled with tears, she covered her face and ran home, even leaving behind her injured alpaca.

The rich kids reacted quickly, "Yes, it was Julia who didn't leash the alpaca. We misjudged the situation. We're sorry."

Their apologies were not for Stella, but for Bran. Bran waved his hand, and they all returned to the courtyard to continue the party.

Thus, the farce ended.

Stella didn't say a word. She turned around, and left with her dog.

"Wait." Bran called out, walking over and extending his hand, "Stella, isn't it time to return my family's gun?"

Stella feigned ignorance, "What gun?"

"The one you took from my bodyguard."

Stella corrected him, "I picked it up from the ground."

"No matter where you picked it up from, it belongs to my family."

Stella didn't need guns, and she didn't want to deal with the Porras family. So, she reached into her pocket and took it out.

However, she was cautious, she unloaded the bullets and only returned the empty gun.

This guy's mood was unpredictable, so who knew if he'd turn the gun on her?

Bran took the empty gun, gave it a casual shake, and chuckled with a meaningful smile. "My bodyguard should be grateful for your mercy." Stella returned the warm smile, "If someone doesn't offend me, I won't offend them."

She had barely taken a few steps when Bran spoke up again, "You seem familiar, as if I've seen you somewhere before?"