Apocalypse Queen: My Space, My Rules Chapter 180: Escape Into the Black Water

While the scene was still in chaos, she pulled an inflatable boat out of her storage space.

Chandler gave her a boost, helping her onto the boat. Then he climbed up quickly after her.

Mariella had already started the engine.

"Someone's escaping! They stole our boats!" The convicts finally noticed the inflatable boat speeding across the water.

A few of them fired wildly, but the visibility was too poor. The boat soon disappeared into the darkness.

Floodwaters had long engulfed the city. Power was out everywhere. Aside from Celestine Ridge, most places were pitch black at night.

Even in Celestine Ridge, only the villa area was brightly lit. The outer edges still blended into the darkness.

The inflatable boat moved fast. It left behind the shouting and gunfire, vanishing into the night.

...

Mariella's real target tonight was the empty Elmgrove Estates. Taking Black Bear's wooden boats was just a side task.

After more than half an hour, they reached the estate.

Most of the homeowners here had been middle-class. The villas and supplies couldn't compare to Celestine Ridge.

There were fewer diesel generators and even less fuel. At night, the whole place was dark. It felt strange for anyone used to bright lights.

Streetlights were out. Only a few villas in the central area were still lit. That was likely where Black Bear had set up his base.

That was exactly where Mariella was headed.

She didn't know Elmgrove Estates well, so finding the supply depot wouldn't be easy.

Luckily, Black Bear's gang had already gathered everything in one place. That made things much easier. It saved her from searching house by house.

Mariella pulled out two suppressors and handed one to Chandler.

They worked in perfect sync. A glance or small gesture was enough for them to understand each other.

They quickly attached the suppressors. Their tactical vests were loaded with spare magazines. Each had a fully loaded handgun strapped to their thigh.

Combat knives and bayonets sat ready on their belts.

Everything was set. Time to move.

...

The gang had started with over a hundred people. Later, more escaped convicts joined them, and the group kept growing.

But most of them weren't real criminals. Many were disaster survivors or security guards and bodyguards who had been turned.

Tonight, Black Bear and his core team had gone to attack another estate. A large number of reinforcements had also been sent to Celestine Ridge.

That left only a dozen or so core members here, along with thirty or forty thugs guarding the base.

When the cat's away, the mice take over.

With the five brothers gone, even their loyal men had mostly left. The dozen or so core members who stayed behind quickly ran wild.

They moved into the central villas—places only Black Bear himself used to live in. They helped themselves to Black Bear's liquor and women.

Black Bear might have been indulgent, but he could only take a few women with him when he left. Most were still kept in Elmgrove Estates.

As soon as the reinforcement teams were gone, the men left behind started celebrating.

They picked out the most attractive women and forced them to strip for their entertainment.

The women were used to this by now. They wore empty smiles and did whatever they were told.

The ones who couldn't play along had already been killed. Only those who knew how to survive were still alive.

They had seen what happened to those who resisted—dying with their naked bodies covered in wounds and bleeding out on the ground.

Some had been so scared they lost their minds. If they screamed or made too much noise, they were shot on the spot.

Their men had been killed. The women who refused to obey had been killed too. The ones left had learned how to please, how to obey, just to stay alive.

They danced as they removed their clothes piece by piece. The men ate, drank, and watched with greedy eyes, shouting crude things at them.

Mariella and Chandler slipped into the central villas. Even from a distance, they could hear loud laughter and sounds from inside.

They didn't need to look to know what was going on.

If they went in now, it would turn into a bloody fight.

Mariella had no interest in wasting time or energy. Better to let them celebrate. When they were drunk and exhausted, it would be easier to deal with them.

She exchanged a glance with Chandler. They both understood.

Without a word, they turned and headed toward the storage building.

The guards were sloppy. No one was even at their post.