Apocalypse Queen: My Space, My Rules Chapter 98: A "Middleman" Reappears

Mariella was already thinking ahead—when harvest time came, she'd need farming equipment.

Doing it all by hand with just her and Chandler would take forever. It wasn't worth it.

...

The three pumpkin vines had produced dozens of full-sized pumpkins. She also picked about five pounds of wood-ear lettuce and over 30 pounds of blueberries.

Mariella washed a batch of blueberries and shared them with Chandler. They were incredible when freshly picked.

By the time the two of them stepped out of the storage space, it was 9:30 p.m.

Chandler flew the helicopter toward the furniture showroom. Mariella messaged Kieran, asking him to help her source a threshing machine and a corn harvester.

"Babe, you can't keep doing this to me," Kieran replied instantly and bluntly. "I'm a man who does big deals. Stop coming to me with small-time errands. You really think I'm some kind of middleman?"

Mariella raised a brow and sent him back a single question mark.

Faced with her stubbornness, Kieran folded immediately. "Fine. I'll connect you with an actual middleman. Small stuff, go to him. Big stuff, come to me."

He forwarded her a contact card.

Mariella took one look at the name and recognized it. "Isn't this Denton from the emerald business?"

"That's him. Except he's not in emerald anymore. He's a full-time middleman now. He's been in trade for years, knows everyone, hears everything. Whatever you need, if the price is right, he'll get it for you."

"Great. Thanks!" Mariella dropped the conversation with Kieran and contacted Denton directly.

Denton wasn't actually old. He was just slightly balding.

He was a straightforward businessman. The emerald transaction he'd handled for Mariella earlier had been a huge help, and she had a good impression of him.

"Ms. Townsend, just name what you need. I'll do everything I can." His reply came fast.

Clearly, the impression was mutual. Mariella didn't haggle, didn't waste time. She was the kind of client every businessman dreamed of.

Mariella told him what she needed: a threshing machine and a corn harvester.

"No problem. I'll get on it. The moment I have something, I'll reach out." Denton Jing was quick to commit.

"You're not in the emerald business anymore?" Mariella was curious.

"Who's buying rocks in a world like this?" Denton sent her a crying-face emoji. "People can't even eat. Nobody wants a pile of pretty stones."

He'd had no choice. He and his crew had pivoted to middleman work.

"Do you still have leftover emerald inventory?" Something in Mariella stirred.

"Plenty!" Denton's business instincts kicked in immediately. "Ms. Townsend, we've done business twice now. You know I'm reliable. If you still want emerald, I'll give you a steep discount."

"How much do you have?" Mariella kept her voice neutral.

A pause. Then Denton answered, "About 1,000 pounds. The stones aren't worth much right now, but shipping them is expensive."

1,000 pounds!?

That number staggered Mariella.

She fought to keep her heartbeat steady and typed back with forced calm, "A thousand pounds of emerald. Total price, 10,000,000. Enough?"

Denton jumped on it. "Absolutely. But no bank transfers. Cash only."

"Done." The 10,000,000 in cash she'd pried out of Harvey's private stash was finally going to be put to use before it turned into wallpaper. "Deliver the threshing machine and corn harvester at the same time. Give me a day's notice before you ship."

She ended the conversation and closed her eyes, running through her next moves.

Chandler had already landed the helicopter, but he didn't disturb her.

A long time passed before Mariella opened her eyes.

She turned toward the cabin window. Outside, the night was heavy. Here and there, a stray light flickered in a high-rise, guttering like a candle about to go out.

"I used to work for a boss. I was dedicated to a fault. I took on everything, the things I could handle and the things I couldn't. Every time he had a problem, I was the first one running to fix it."

Mariella turned to Chandler with a smile and continued, "Back then, I never thought about costs or consequences. I never weighed what I was getting in return. As long as I had an ounce of energy left, I kept going. As long as I could still stand up, I kept working for him."

Chandler's lashes parted slightly. He watched her in silence.

Mariella went on. "Looking back, I was an idiot. And my boss was garbage. I told myself that if I ever became a boss and found an employee as hardworking as I'd been, I'd treat them right. I would never grind that poor fool into the ground.

"But now I am the boss. And I did find someone exactly like that—someone who works hard without complaining, just like I used to. And I forgot every word of what I'd promised myself. I run him ragged. I use him until there's nothing left."