Apocalypse Queen: My Space, My Rules Chapter 106: Three Days to Pay

In the darkness, Liraelith had been swallowed by floodwaters, and countless pairs of greedy, hungry eyes had long since fixed themselves on the brightly lit Celestine Ridge.

The place was like a dazzling pearl, like a juicy slab of meat. Its light and abundance gave off an irresistible lure, stirring the hungry beasts lurking in the dark.

Maybe in this life, Celestine Ridge would face disaster even earlier than it had in the last one.

Mariella had long been ready for battle. If people came, she would kill people. If monsters came, she would kill monsters.

Whoever dared invade her territory would be shown no mercy.

...

After dinner, her teammates sat in the large first-floor living room watching programs on the giant flat-screen TV.

Although Kieran had sent people to install large satellite dishes throughout Celestine Ridge, the number of channels they could receive kept shrinking.

Most of what played on screen was grim coverage of the disaster. Experts were still instructing flood victims on how to survive and rescue themselves, only to be met with endless curses and outrage.

As long as the newly built official relief stations remained shut down, the refugees could only fend for themselves.

But even when the relief stations were operating, they only provided two meals a day, and each meal was barely enough to half-fill a stomach.

The conditions there were filthy and chaotic, and thieves were everywhere. People had to sleep with one eye open, or they might wake up with nothing left except the clothes on their backs.

Mariella was not watching TV. She was looking down at her phone.

Another explosive piece of news had appeared in the Celestine Ridge group chat.

"Everyone, look at this. Did that rumored gang of violent felons come to Celestine Ridge to commit crimes?" the owner of No. 27 posted, attaching a video, a caption, and a trembling emoji.

The homeowners in the group hurried to open the video, and all of them were shocked.

In the video, a group of thugs in suits stormed into a homeowner's house and forcibly dragged out a delicate young heiress.

The young woman was terrified. Her face was pale and streaked with tears, but the suited thugs showed not the slightest sympathy.

Ignoring the desperate pleas of her family, they only threw out one harsh warning. "You've got three days. If you still can't come up with the compensation money, we'll use her to pay the debt."

The Celestine Ridge homeowners' chat exploded over the video, and everyone felt threatened.

"What the hell is this? Bandits just came into Celestine Ridge and kidnapped someone? Nobody's stopping them?"

"Who's going to stop them? The whole world's a mess right now. Looting and violence are everywhere. Compared to outside, Celestine Ridge is paradise."

"Could these thugs be that rumored death-row gang? Why are they all dressed in suits and looking so polished?"

"Yeah, something seems off. I heard escaped convicts were all bald. Did they put on wigs or something?"

"That girl who got taken... wasn't she the Shepherds' daughter?"

"Yeah, that was Roxanna!"

...

Mariella finished watching the video. That was right, the girl who had been abducted by force was Roxanna.

For a moment, she could not tell which group had taken Roxanna, but she guessed it might be connected to the Shepherds losing their yacht.

Had the Shepherds mortgaged Roxanna in order to buy the yacht?

No matter who had kidnapped Roxanna, they were effectively Mariella's allies.

The enemy of her enemy was her friend.

This was good news, and she was more than happy to watch the drama unfold from the sidelines.

Right after that, another homeowner posted a new video in the group chat, and everyone rushed to open it.

In the video, Harvey led several bodyguards in an attempt to stop the suited thugs who had taken Roxanna. But his attitude and tone were surprisingly polite, even carrying a trace of humble flattery.

"Gentlemen, thank you for making the trip yourselves. But the one who owes money isn't Roxanna. Debts belong to the debtor. Please let her go."

Unfortunately, the suited thugs gave Harvey no respect at all. One of them sneered and shot back, "Cut the worthless sweet talk. Mr. Guerrero said if you don't gather the rest of the compensation money within three days, not only will this woman be sold off, but we'll strip both the Grahams and the Shepherds clean."

With that, the thugs dragged Roxanna over and shoved her into a small helicopter.

"Harvey, save me!" Roxanna cried pitifully, looking as if she were about to break apart.

But Harvey ultimately did not have the courage to risk everything, because he had vaguely seen the barrel of a Gatling gun protruding from the helicopter window.

If he dared turn hostile, Vere's men might start slaughtering people on the spot.

And so, under the cover of night, Roxanna was kidnapped and taken away by the gang.

After watching the second video, the homeowners erupted once again. The group chat instantly flooded with more than 99 new messages.

"Who is Mr. Guerrero? How can he be this arrogant, barging into someone's home and taking a woman?"

"Shh, keep your voice down. Mr. Guerrero isn't someone you want to mess with."

"I heard his power is huge now. Even the authorities are wary of him and turn a blind eye to everything. Forget kidnapping, people say even if he killed someone, nobody would dare interfere."