Apocalypse Queen: My Space, My Rules Chapter 226: Backup

Not long after leaving the storage space, Mariella received a call from Kieran.

"Mariella, Officer Abbott firmly refused, but Terry agreed to move over."

The outcome wasn't surprising.

She instructed, "Alright. I'm still busy outside right now. Help me arrange a good place for Terry's family. Try to assign him a villa that he'll feel satisfied with."

"Where exactly are you busy?" Kieran's voice suddenly became cautious.

Mariella smiled faintly. "At my honeymoon."

He fell silent.

It felt like a bolt of lightning had struck him. His heart cracked open again.

She wasn't leaving him even a shred of hope.

"Is Chandler really that good?" he asked bitterly.

"He's my fiancé now, so please watch your tone."

Mariella wasn't trying to anger him, but she didn't want to distance Kieran either. She only wanted to make sure there was no ambiguity between them.

Their relationship would always remain that of cooperative partners. It would never become anything else.

To ease the tension, she changed the topic. "Mr. Wallace has stayed at the official shelter for quite some time now. How are things going there?"

That worked right away. Kieran's focus shifted immediately. "Ugh, don't even ask!"

He started complaining. "Grandpa described life there with just one line of poetry."

Mariella became curious. "What line?"

Mr. Wallace really is quite an elegant man! Even during times like this, he could still quote poetry?

"Grandpa said every single day at the official base feels like 'wind blades and frost swords closing in from every side.' Life there is just too hard. He even praised me, saying I had good foresight and that staying at Celestine Ridge was the correct choice. At least it left our family with a backup plan.

"Grandpa also told me to thank you properly. If you hadn't been here, our whole family would've moved into the official shelter. The amount of supplies we'd burn through every day would've been unbelievable. Maybe one day..."

Kieran didn't finish his sentence. He got a little choked up.

Mariella wisely didn't press further and smoothly changed the subject. "As long as the residents cooperate to defend Celestine Ridge, we'll always manage to get by. As for the situation at the official base, I believe Mr. Wallace already has his own plans."

Wallace wasn't a foolish man. He would never willingly remain as someone else's endless supply source.

Besides, Celestine Ridge remained stable. It was like providing the Hancocks with a strong backup base.

It was likely that Wallace wouldn't easily leave the official base. Instead, he would figure out a way to secure a position there for the Hancocks.

After all, he had a very capable grandson supporting him. He still had plenty of options.

...

Mariella was worried that delays could lead to problems, so she decided to complete the gemstone exchange as quickly as possible.

So today's schedule put the gemstone exchange first.

She took out the largest wooden boat from her storage space. According to the agreed-upon list of supplies with Denton, she retrieved 80 deflated inflatable speedboats, 160 deflated kayaks, 500 life vests, and 500 pounds of cold weapons.

In addition, there were four two-ton wooden boats, which would be taken out at the destination.

Based on their agreement, those supplies would be traded for 48,000 pounds of gemstone.

After finishing all preparations, she called Denton.

He sounded extremely happy when he heard how direct she was. "The goods are already inside the warehouse. I'll send the location to you right away."

Mariella was cautious. "Will you be there too?"

"Of course. This is such a large deal. As the middleman, I must be present. And with our relationship, I would show up anyway," Denton replied seriously.

Even though his business had been thriving lately, Mariella was still his most valuable client. Nobody else even came close.

He had to set aside all other matters and personally oversee this transaction.

As for his remaining business tasks, he handed them over to Patrick and Simon.

Chandler followed the coordinates Denton sent and drove the wooden boat for about an hour before reaching the nearest gemstone warehouse.

After confirming no one was nearby, Mariella released the four wooden boats from her storage space. Chandler boarded them and secured them in place.

Then they continued guiding the largest wooden boat toward the warehouse.

The warehouse ahead of them was already halfway underwater. The salvaged gemstones had been stacked onto a temporary platform.

A large weighing scale stood on that platform. It had originally been used for river sand and construction materials. No one had expected that one day it would be used to measure precious gemstones.

Seven or eight armed men surrounded the platform, each holding a firearm.

Even though international gemstone dealers had declined, they still had solid financial backing, which was enough to hire armed guards.

Chandler steered the wooden boat closer until the hull was level with the platform.

Immediately, two men stepped forward and set up a simple gangplank.