Apocalypse Queen: My Space, My Rules Chapter 84: Ambush on the Flooded Waters

She pried open several of the jewelry store safes.

The waterproof mining lamp cast a blinding glare, revealing a breathtaking Ocean's Heart necklace.

Each sapphire was flawless—crystal-clear, perfectly cut, shimmering with a deep, hypnotic glow under the light.

"Wow," Mariella let out an impressed breath, almost tempted to keep it for herself.

But the moment she stored it in her storage space, the space would immediately consume it.

While she hesitated, Chandler took it from her and stored it away instead.

Mariella nodded slightly, increasingly satisfied with this sharp and capable subordinate. He was definitely getting a bonus at the end of the month.

The two of them went on to loot three more shops in a row.

Their oxygen tanks eventually ran dry, so she pulled Chandler straight into the storage space. She swapped out the tanks, and returned to continue the operation.

After hitting three stores, they had lost count of how much they had taken.

By the end, when Mariella closed her eyes, all she could see was glittering treasure. It was like she had fallen into a fairytale hoard.

If this had been in the past, every one of these pieces could have been exchanged for unimaginable wealth. Now, however, they were nothing more than fuel for her storage space.

In the apocalypse, jewelry was far less valuable than food, and as disasters escalated, its value would only continue to collapse.

Mariella already had enough supplies. What she needed now was more storage capacity to hoard even more.

Over an hour later, the two of them surfaced exhausted, only to realize their inflatable boat was gone.

Somewhere in the night sky, the faint roar of a helicopter engine echoed. This time, it was much clearer, and it was almost directly above them.

Mariella's expression darkened. She grabbed Chandler and immediately dove back underwater, then decisively entered the storage space.

Almost at the same moment, a sniper rifle cracked through the air. Bullets ripped through the water where they had just been.

Inside a low-hovering helicopter, Harvey lowered his rifle and ordered coldly, "Land in a hover and send two men down. I want them alive. If not, I want the bodies."

Even though he was confident in his marksmanship, the lack of a visible corpse made him uneasy.

The helicopter circled lower, hovering roughly 10 feet above the water's surface.

Two bodyguards dropped an inflatable kayak and then descended on ropes.

Their technique was sloppy—one missed the landing and splashed straight into the water, while the other slammed onto the kayak, nearly flipping it over.

Fortunately, both wore life vests and managed to scramble aboard.

"Useless," Harvey snapped. "Search the area. I want them alive or dead—no mistakes this time."

He had personally joined the operation this time, even renting a helicopter, determined to finish Mariella once and for all.

There would be no second failure.

...

Mariella and Chandler reappeared in the storage space and scanned the outside situation using her mind power.

She quickly spotted the kayak with two men aboard, sweeping the water and firing sporadic shots downward.

Above them hovered the helicopter, and Harvey was inside, scanning the waters as well.

So they had been tracked not long after leaving Celestine Ridge.

Mariella let out a cold laugh. "So they're not short on resources, huh? Even a helicopter. Perfect. My space has expanded again, so I can store as many as they bring."

She pulled out a sniper rifle taken from the assassin and handed it to Chandler. "You take the helicopter pilot. I'll handle those two on the kayak."

Once the pilot was eliminated, the helicopter would be forced down and fall straight into her storage space.

As for Harvey inside, she would make sure he died far worse than Kingston.

"Understood." Chandler was confident. He had never missed a shot.

Mariella chambered her pistol, preparing to kill.

Both of them were still in wetsuits.

They re-entered the water from the storage space, remaining submerged where they had already been hiding.

Chandler adjusted his position, searching for the perfect angle on the pilot.

Because they were tethered together at the waist, Mariella had to shift with him in coordination.

Above them, the kayak drifted back and forth, and the two men were firing blindly into the water.

She could have taken them out instantly, but to avoid alerting the helicopter, she held her fire.

Chandler finally locked onto the angle. But before he could pull the trigger, the water suddenly surged.

What had been murky floodwater turned turbulent, as if a tidal wave had been unleashed from below.

A deep, rumbling sound rolled through the depths, as though something massive was surging toward them.

Both of them were thrown off balance by the sudden current. If not for the rope binding them together, they would have already been torn apart by the flood's force.