2025-08-13 12:03:48For a moment, the world had felt safe, even forgiving. Then another heavy knock shattered it. Ash opened the door to find Mr. Braxton, the landlord, standing in the dim porch light. His eyes, sharp and cold, locked on Ash like a predator sizing up prey.
“I don’t trust you,” Braxton said, his voice low but hard. “I need the money now.” He was surprised, what was the cause of the sudden change of heart. Ash tried to keep his voice calm. “Sir, I told you, I just got a job. The first salary comes at the end of the month....”
“I said now!” Braxton snapped, stepping forward. His hand shot out, gripping Ash's collar in a sudden, brutal motion. “You’ve told me too many stories. Tonight, I’m done listening.” “Sir, wait!” Tessa cried, rushing to Ash’s side, but Braxton yanked him forward, shoving him toward the edge of the porch.
“You think I’ll stand here while you feed me excuses? You’ll answer to everyone tonight!”
Before Ash could brace himself, Braxton dragged him out into the open courtyard of the compound. His boots scraped the dirt, his shirt twisting under Braxton’s fist. The commotion spread quickly. Lights flicked on in windows. Doors creaked open. Curious faces appeared in the shadows, then stepped into the pale wash of the moonlight.
“Eh, what’s going on there?” someone called. A woman on the second-floor balcony leaned over the railing, squinting. “Is that the man owing rent? The one in room twelve?” “Yes, it’s him!” Braxton shouted, his voice echoing through the compound. “Owing me eighteen months’ rent and sitting around under the stars like a king!”
The murmurs began, low at first, then growing into an ugly chorus. “Eighteen months? Ha!” a man laughed from the far end. “And he still has the nerve to sleep here.” “Somebody like that should be thrown out tonight,” a woman muttered darkly. Another voice, sharper, hissed from the crowd, “Better yet, beat him till he learns not to cheat people!”
Asher's stomach tightened. The words were like stones thrown in the dark, each one finding its mark. “Kill him!” someone in the back shouted, and a small ripple of laughter followed.
Tessa’s voice broke through, pleading, “Please, please stop. This is not.....” Her voice was drowned out by another burst of jeers.
“Look at him,” a young man snickered, leaning against a wall. “Can’t even keep a roof over his head but has the time to sit with his wife like he’s in a movie.” “Maybe that’s why he’s broke,” someone else called. “Too busy stargazing to pay rent!”
The laughter rose, raw and cutting. Asher stood rigid in Braxton’s grip, jaw clenched so tight his teeth ached. The urge to shout back burned in his chest, but he swallowed it. Words would only feed the fire.
Tessa reached for Braxton’s arm again. “Please, sir, this is humiliating...” “Good,” Braxton barked. “Maybe humiliation will make him pay faster.” A few people clapped mockingly at that.
From the second floor, an elderly woman shook her head and said loud enough for all to hear, “He looks too proud to beg, but not too proud to live off someone else’s roof. Shameful!”
The compound was awake now, fully alive with the scent of scandal. Children peered out from behind their parents’ legs, eyes wide. Neighbors whispered and pointed.
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Chapter 15: The Long Wait
Ash sat at the edge of the bed, lacing his worn-out shoes with slow, deliberate movements, as though tying those frayed laces was the only thing holding his life together. His wife, Tessa, stood by the bed, arms folded, a frown etched across her face.“You know,” she began, her voice sharp yet tired, “your friend could actually help. How long are you going to keep pretending you don’t need him?”Ash hands paused mid-motion. He sighed, tugged the laces tight, and stared at the floor. “Tessa, I said I’d think about it. I don’t want to show up at his door begging.”“You think pride will feed us?” she snapped. “You think pride will pay for Nora's school fees? Ash, the world doesn’t care about your pride.”He clenched his jaw. She wasn’t wrong. Nora's face flashed in his mind — her big, curious eyes when she asked why she wasn't at school like the other children. He swallowed hard.“I’ll handle it,” he muttered.“Handle it?” Tessa scoffed. “You’ve been saying that for ages now. No, Ash.If
Chapter 14: The Burden Of Secrets
Ash stood in front of his door, the handle cold beneath his trembling palm. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply.He stared at the envelope.He couldn’t let her see. Not yet.He pushed the thought away, forcing himself to focus on the one place he still called “home.”The lock clicked open.His wife, Tessa, sat on the couch with her arms crossed, her expression already pinched tight in disapproval. She didn’t even have to say a word; Ash could feel her anger and frustration, he was too.“You’re late” Her voice was sharp, weary. “And you come home looking like that?” Her eyes darted to his shirt, to the stains, the smell. “Ash, what is it this time? Did you lose your driving job? Did you get kicked out again?”Ash dropped his eyes, setting his bag carefully near the door, away from her gaze. He couldn’t risk her curiosity leading her to open it.“I… it wasn’t my fault,” he muttered, his voice raw with exhaustion. “Things didn’t go as planned. But I’ll fix it. I always fix it.”Tessa l
Chapter 13: The Truth Spills II
This… this is insane,” he stammered, shaking his head. His chest constricted, his throat dry. “You expect me to believe this? That some billionaire remembered a poor nobody like me? That he’d leave me everything? No. This is a scam. Some cruel joke.”The old man stepped out of the car now, his presence towering despite his age. His voice softened.“You don’t remember me, do you? I don't even expect you to. I was there that day. I watched you hand my employer, Mr. Hawthorne, that umbrella. I was his retainer, his lawyer, his shadow. He spoke of you every day until he went missing. He made me promise to find you, no matter how long it took.”Ash’s vision blurred. He wanted to shout, to deny, to push the man away but memories assaulted him. The kindness of that moment. The frailty in the old man’s eyes. The smile of gratitude. He had dismissed it as a passing encounter, something meaningless. Yet here it was, resurfacing years later, like a tidal wave threatening to drown him.His lips t
Chapter 12: The Truth Spills I
Ash’s legs were beginning to ache from the long walk, but he didn’t care. His shoes squelched softly with the water that had soaked through them when the bucket was poured over his head. The smell of detergent clung to him, sharp and sour, while patches of mud streaked his trousers where he had stumbled. His shirt stuck uncomfortably to his skin, damp and cold. But none of that compared to the heavy weight on his chest. He muttered to himself, fists clenched at his sides.Endure, Ash. Just endure. For Tessa. For Nora.His heart was heavy, yet his mind kept replaying every sneer, every laugh, every shove from the guards who pushed him away like he was garbage. The humiliation cut deeper than any wound.Then, a low hum broke into his thoughts. A car engine. A sleek, black vehicle slowed to match his stride, its headlights slicing through the shadows. Ash stiffened, his heartbeat quickening. “What now?” he muttered, refusing to look.The tinted window rolled down, smooth and deliberate,
Chapter 11: It wasn't my fault
Ash had just finished scrubbing the sleek black company car until his hands ached and the skin on his knuckles looked raw. The vehicle gleamed in the faint sunlight, and for a moment, he let himself feel a small shred of pride.But that moment didn’t last.A loud splash yanked his attention upward. Out of nowhere, a bucket of murky, foul-smelling water cascaded over him, drenching his freshly washed shirt and clinging to his skin in cold, slimy patches. The stench hit his nostrils instantly, like rotten vegetables mixed with stale mop water.The gasps and snickers started immediately.Two young men in neat suits, clearly junior staff from the Langston Group offices above, were leaning over the railing of the loading dock, the empty bucket in one’s hand. “Oops,” one of them called mockingly. “Guess we missed the drain!”Ash’s chest tightened with fury. He clenched his fists so hard his nails bit into his palms. He wanted to shout, to march up there and demand they clean their mess. But
Chapter 10: We should go over the rules
Ash stepped into the stairwell, the door closing behind him with a hollow clang. The air was cooler here, but stale, carrying the faint smell of damp concrete. Each step downward was dimly lit by flickering bulbs, the kind that buzzed faintly as if they too were tired of being here.The files in his hands weren’t heavy, but the awkward stack forced him to keep his arms bent at an uncomfortable angle. By the time he reached the basement, his shirt clung to his back.The basement door creaked loudly when he pushed it open. Inside, the storage room looked like it hadn’t been touched in years. Boxes were stacked haphazardly, some leaning dangerously, their labels faded or curling off. A thin layer of dust coated everything, and somewhere in the shadows, water dripped steadily into a metal bucket.He spotted the old filing cabinet where these documents likely belonged, but as he crossed the room, something scuttled across the floor, a rat, its tail vanishing behind a box. Ash froze, heart
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