2025-07-14 15:30:46As if on cue, the rest of the family hissed in near-unison, like a choir of bitter serpents rehearsing their disdain.
“Who does she think she is?” one of them spat, face twisted in disgust. “Even if she dropped dead right now, I wouldn’t blink.” “Stupid girl.” “So immature. I only pity that poor gentleman who’s seen this side of her—he’ll have no choice but to leave her again.” “No one ever stays with her.” Charles stood there, briefly stunned, watching the room slip back into idle chatter like they hadn’t just torn someone apart with words sharp enough to draw blood. Their cruelty was so casual, it almost looked rehearsed. He turned back to Sadie. She was completely out of it—slumped, wrecked, emotionally gutted. He didn’t hesitate. He crossed the room and scooped her into his arms. Just as he stepped outside, Lauren rushed toward him, arms slightly spread like sh
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“Miss Sadie?” The voice jolted Sadie out of another spiral of thought. She blinked, realizing she’d drifted again. “Are you okay, ma’am?” Hardin asked, brows knit. Sadie forced a smile. “Where are we heading next?” “You told me to drive to the company, ma’am. We’re here.” “Oh.” She glanced out the window — sure enough, the glass façade of the building loomed before them. “I was just pulling your leg,” she added, but even to her, it sounded bone-dry. Hardin stepped out quickly to open her door. “I’ll handle the rest on my desk,” she said as she got out. “Go get yourself a dessert or something.” “What should I get for you?” “I’m fine.” “You don’t want Charles’—” “No. I don’t want him.” The words shot out before she could stop them. Her tone was sharper than she meant, and the flicker in Hardin’s eyes told her she’d given h
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Charles didn’t respond. Sadie could take care of herself. She hadn’t even bothered to see him off—hadn’t seemed to care—and he didn’t want her to.Caring would only make things worse when the remaining three months were up and he had to walk away.He took a cigarette from the pack August had bought earlier, rolling it between his fingers before reaching for the lighter.“May I do you the honour, sir?” August asked, hand already hovering to take the lighter.Charles shot him a look—cold, flat, the kind that made August remember exactly who he was dealing with. The kind of look a God of War would give before pulling a trigger.August’s grin faltered. He raised both palms in mock surrender. “I was just kidding. No need to take me too seriously.” But his voice was nervous all the same. From the bedroom doorway, Ramiro held his breath. He’d only pretended to lock the door earlier; curiosity had kept him posted in the shadows.Two
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“Most of them are drowning in debt. Dario shows up like Santa Claus, promises to pay off their families and maybe toss in some extra cash… and then—well, I don’t have to draw you a picture,” August said, collecting the paper from Charles.“The plan is,” August continued, “you pretend to be a stammerer, sir.”Charles slowly raised a brow.“I’m not done, sir,” August said quickly. “I’ll pretend to be dumb, and we’ll stick to the cover of you being my personal assistant. That part won’t change.”“I still don’t understand what any of this has to do with me pretending to be a stammerer.”“Sir, I can’t go in alone when we meet Dario. You’re the one who wants revenge, so I want you to do it yourself. If I pretend to be dumb, you’ll be my translator—”“And Dario will believe you can’t understand sign language?” Charles cut in.“We…” August paused, thinking. “We can just say I don’t understand sign language.”“You were b
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Outside, Charles scanned the area for Ramiro. The boy’s voice was gone, so the call must’ve ended. But he wasn’t in sight.“Over here,” Ramiro called from a little ways off, walking back toward him.“You’re scared I might knock you down if we go another round?” Charles asked.Ramiro gave a short chuckle. “I’m really sorry about earlier. You don’t have to pay us. I can do this much for you for free.”“About that,” Charles said, ignoring the ‘free’ part like it was background noise, “you want cash, or should I wire it?”“I just said—”“Bro, I’ve only been scared of one woman my whole life. Your girlfriend’s the second,” Charles cut in. “If I promised her something and went back on it, what do you think she’d do to me?”Ramiro chuckled again. “People say she’s scary, but I’m not scared of her. Not a bit.”“You’re my new role model, man.”Another quiet chuckle from Ramiro.“You're in college or som
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“What time? It’s not even been two hours since I met you and you’ve already had about a thousand things to apologize to me for,” Charles said. “I find it… kind of funny.”Ramiro smiled.The first time Charles had seen him smile. The kid actually looked like the type to make a group of girls stop mid-conversation.“I meant—running off with your meal. I saw someone that I didn't want to see me in that state but she still ended up seeing me. I'm really sorry,” Ramiro said.“It’s okay,” Charles replied. “Thanks to that, I’ll have nothing to eat tonight, and that works pretty well for weight loss.”Ramiro smiled again. “I’m sorry you had to see Luzia that way. She’s not usually the type to make a scene in public. I… got on her nerves, somehow.”“Yeah. I figured that out too. You’ve got a talent for getting on people’s nerves,” Charles said.Ramiro laughed. First time in five months someone hadn’t immediately called him stupid
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August was standing there, breathing like he’d just sprinted a marathon in Bogotá’s altitude, one fist still frozen mid-air. “Sir…” His eyes went wide when he saw Charles. “How—how did you get here?” He looked genuinely baffled, like Charles had just teleported in from New York. “I didn’t share my location with you. How did you even—” He stopped mid-sentence, suspicion dawning. “No way you’d be inside if—” “She brought me here,” Charles said lightly, rescuing August before his brain short-circuited completely. Every head swiveled toward the girl. “Who are you?” August demanded. Then, flicking his eyes to the boy, “Are you two siblings?” The girl nodded far too quickly. “Yes. He’s my elder brother.” The boy—still looking like his face had been run over by a bus—got to his feet and strode toward her. Strangely fast for someone whose body had just declared war on itself.
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