Chapter 28 – Debt Collectors Came Calling
Inside a luxurious villa, an old man with silver hair sat in the center of the living room.
The redwood cane in his hand, trimmed with gold, struck the expensive carpet heavily.
"Rowan, is there any movement in Hannah's belly?"
Rowan bent quickly, his attitude respectful.
"Grandfather, don't worry. Hannah is actively preparing. It should happen soon."
"Hurry up."
The old man closed his eyes.
"Once she carries the Hale family's blood, then reveal the family's real foundation to her."
Rowan nodded again and again.
After the servants helped the old man back to his room, Rowan's obedient grandson expression vanished.
He walked to the courtyard, stared at the row of luxury cars, and lit a cigar. The fingers holding it trembled slightly.
The first heir of the Hale family had originally been Rowan's older brother.
But during a recent physical exam, the older brother had been found completely infertile.
For the continuation of the family line, the old man turned his eyes to Rowan, the second grandson.
Rowan had thought fortune had fallen from the sky. He was so excited he could not sleep for days.
To be safe, he also went to a private hospital for testing.
The result was like thunder on a clear day.
Damn it.
He was infertile too.
Not a single bit of this could leak.
The old man was pressing hard. Without inheritance rights, Rowan was nothing.
Forced into a dead end, he could only borrow seed.
A poor country kid like Evan, with no background and no deep scheming, was easiest to control. Once Hannah gave birth to a healthy boy, Rowan could toss Evan a few hundred thousand as hush money and make him disappear.
As for whether the old man might one day suddenly order a paternity test?
Once Rowan got the family assets, the whole Hale family would be under his control. Bribing a lab doctor would be one sentence.
Meanwhile, in the dark alley behind the trade college, the cheap KTVs and barbecue stalls had lit their neon signs. At night, that broken street specialized in squeezing the coins from poor students' pockets.
Under a dim utility pole, Fiona was blocked by three tattooed men.
The leader was called Ace, a real loan shark connected to the local Southgate Crew.
Not a dyed-hair student.
Not an auto repair poser.
A real street bastard.
"Fiona, you borrowed five thousand. With interest, it's eight thousand now."
Ace exhaled smoke, his voice cold.
"If I don't see money by the end of the month, then even if you have to sell yourself, you will pay me back."
Fiona's legs shook. Her voice carried tears.
"Ace, I'll get it. I'll definitely pay."
Ace sneered and grabbed her chin.
His gaze dropped crudely toward her neckline. His hand followed, rough and humiliating.
Fiona went stiff and did not dare move.
"This counts as today's interest."
Ace pulled his hand back and patted her bloodless cheek.
"Next time, I'll collect principal and interest together."
The men swaggered away.
Fiona slid down the utility pole like mud.
Vanity killed people.
Seeing other girls buy new phones and carry brand bags, she had grown jealous and secretly borrowed from loan sharks. The first wild taste of spending money had been intoxicating. Then the debt rolled bigger and bigger until she could not breathe under it.
Dragging heavy steps back to the dorm, she pushed open the door.
Wendy was sitting on her bed, waving her hands and telling roommates how Evan had beaten the so-called auto repair boss into the dirt.
The moment Fiona entered, the whole dorm went silent.
Everyone looked at her like she was a fool.
Fiona clenched her teeth and said nothing. She kicked off her shoes, climbed into bed, and pulled the curtain shut.
Then she took out her phone and placed her last hope on Mason, that dead loyal dog.
Mason, do you have money? Can you lend me some? I need it urgently.
On the other side, Mason was drinking by the street with several bad friends.
To help Fiona, his cousin had gotten beaten and his own face had been thrown away. He had wanted to use the chance to take Fiona to a motel, but that woman had rejected him without mercy.
Seeing the message, Mason's licking-dog instincts bounced back from the bottom.
His thumbs hammered the keypad.
Fiona heard the message tone and thought money was coming.
When she opened it, it was like ice water over her head.
I helped you so much and you wouldn't even let me touch you once. You think I'm your cash machine? Get lost. Blocked.
Fiona panicked and sent another message.
Failed.
She had nowhere left to go.
Suddenly, she remembered a woman from her hometown, Aria, who supposedly did well in Harbor City.
She quickly messaged:
Aria, where are you working? Can you help me find fast money?
Aria replied almost instantly:
I'm at Victoria Bath Club. If you want money, come find me tomorrow night.
Seeing the words bath club, Fiona's hand trembled.
She knew what kind of place that was.
But she had no choice.
The next morning, Evan sprang from bed with two dark circles under his eyes and the energy of a man possessed.
The night before, he had locked his door, hugged Hannah's laptop, and studied photography techniques until dawn.
To make his relationship with Hannah warm up, he was going all in.
Before coming to Harbor City, Evan had never even touched a proper camera.
After breakfast, Hannah went back to the master bedroom to change.
Not long later, the bedroom door opened.
Hannah stepped out in sandals.
On the bottom, she wore tight denim shorts that showed her straight, even legs perfectly. On top, she wore a low-cut fitted camisole that pulled her curves into a shape that nearly made Evan forget how to breathe.
A wide woven sunhat sat on her head, and tinted sunglasses rested on her nose.
Evan stared.
Natural temptation.
One more look felt fatal.
"Let's go. I'll take you to the seaside."
Hannah drove Evan straight toward the coast.
All the way there, Evan's mind was full of foreign movie scenes: blonde girls, bikinis, hot bodies covering the beach.
When they arrived and he jumped out of the car, reality slapped him.
The beach was packed with people like dumplings in boiling water.
Where were the bikini beauties?
Everywhere he looked, middle-aged women in conservative one-piece swimsuits and children with life rings were splashing around.
The gap between dream and reality was cruel.
Hannah parked in the paid lot and brought Evan to the beach entrance.
After buying tickets, they reached the fork between the men's and women's changing rooms.
"Go change. See you on the sand."
Hannah lifted the bag containing her swimsuit.
Evan carried the beach shorts he had just bought and entered the men's changing room.
Author's Note:
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Thank you for reading.