C89 Too Much Debt

The moment Annabelle stepped out of the cab with her mother and Cathy, she froze.

The little bungalow she had left a few days ago was unrecognizable.

The sagging roof, the peeling paint and the overgrown lawn were nowhere to be found.

They were all gone like they never existed.

In its place stood a pristine home, painted in a soft cream color with dark green shutters framing the windows.

A new porch wrapped around the front, and fresh flower beds lined the walkway.

It looked like something out of a dream.

Annabelle blinked, trying to process what she was seeing.

“Surprise!” Cathy burst out, her face lighting up with joy. “Do you like it?”

Annabelle’s voice caught in her throat. “What... what happened here?”

Cathy grinned, her pigtails bouncing as she practically danced up the new steps. “It was a surprise! I wasn’t supposed to tell you, but they said it’s for us. Isn’t it amazing?”

“They?” Annabelle repeated, a sinking feeling forming in her stomach.

Their neighbors began to gather, drawn by the commotion.

Mrs. Alvarez, who lived next door from the Wieners, was the first to approach, her face beaming. “Annabelle, you’ve got yourself a fine young man! He’s a keeper, that one.”

Annabelle’s brow furrowed. “What are you talking about?”

“The man who did all this for you,” Mrs. Alvarez said, gesturing to the house. “It’s good to see a man taking care of his woman like that.”

Annabelle opened her mouth to correct her, to explain that there was no “man” in her life, but the words wouldn’t come.

What would be the point?

They wouldn’t believe her anyway.

Her mother, Mauve, was wheeled to the porch by one of his men who had come for their hospital discharge.

She looked around in awe, her tired face lighting up with a smile Annabelle hadn’t seen in years. “You’ve done well for yourself, Annabelle,” Mauve said, her voice brimming with pride. “I don’t know how you managed it, but I’m proud of you.”

Annabelle’s lips tightened.

She didn’t have the heart to argue.

Not now.

Not when her mother was looking so happy for the first time in as long as Annabelle could remember.

The external renovations weren’t the only surprise.

The interior of the house was even more transformed.

The small living room had been painted a soothing pastel blue, the furniture was all new, and plush rugs covered the previously bare floors.

Streamers hung from the ceiling, and a banner on the wall read, Welcome Home, Mauve!

Cathy was buzzing with excitement. “Look at the kitchen! Look at the bedrooms! There’s even a back door now!” she shouted, darting from one room to the next.

Annabelle stood in the doorway, her arms crossed tightly over her chest.

This wasn’t just a home improvement.

It was like an entirely new house.

And it had been done in just a few days.

Her confusion deepened as she turned to the driver who had wheeled Mauve inside. “How…when…who paid for all this?” she blurted out through a throat choked with

The man shrugged. “Just following orders, ma’am. Enjoy your new home.”

As the neighbors poured in, offering congratulations and curious glances, Annabelle’s mind raced.

She stepped away from the living room where her mother was being showered with home-cooked food and get-well-soon gifts from their neighbours.

Her throat clogged with unshed tears as she neared the room that had become her chamber of torture for the past years.

She couldn’t bring herself to get closer to it even though she could see from the door that it had been renovated too.

She wanted to believe the renovation would have taken away the ugly feeling she had anytime she stepped into that room, but she couldn’t face it yet.

So, she stepped through the newly created back door into the mini garden freshly planted behind their house.

Her eyes stared unseeing at the beauty before her as her mind took flight with her tumbling thoughts.

She could guess who was behind this.

Dante.

It had to be him.

Earlier at the hospital, Annabelle realised something else too before they left.

When they’d been preparing to discharge her mother, a nurse had wheeled in a brand-new wheelchair, sleek and shiny, far nicer than anything Annabelle had expected.

“This is for your mother,” the nurse had said with a smile.

Annabelle had frowned. “I didn’t pay for this.”

The nurse hesitated, her cheerful expression faltering. “It’s... a donation.”

“From whom?” Annabelle pressed, her eyes narrowing.

The nurse’s cheeks flushed. “I’m not supposed to say.”

Annabelle crossed her arms, refusing to budge. “Tell me.”

The nurse glanced around before lowering her voice. “Your man,” she whispered. “The hospital’s been benefiting a lot from his generosity lately.”

Annabelle’s stomach had tightened. “What else did he donate?”

The nurse avoided her gaze. “I don’t know…”

“Don’t lie to me.”

The nurse sighed, realizing she’d already said too much. “The wheelchairs. Some equipment. Supplies for the pediatric ward. He’s done a lot.”

Annabelle was speechless.

And now this?

Standing in her completely renovated home, that unease turned into something darker.

The house was perfect, almost too perfect.

It was the kind of place she’d always dreamed of having for her family.

A safe, comfortable home where Cathy could grow up happy and where Mauve could finally rest.

Somehow he had woven himself into that dream.

Now, it was more his

The realization hit her like a punch to the gut.

When he’d said, You belong to me, he didn’t just mean her body.

All of this.

Every donation, every renovation, every grand gesture wasn’t just generosity.

It was a transaction.

And she was the payment.

Annabelle’s stomach churned as she watched Cathy giggle with the neighbors.

Her stomach got queasy as Mauve marveled at the new curtains and furniture.

They were happy.

So happy, and Annabelle couldn’t bring herself to ruin it for them.

But inside, dread coiled tighter with every passing second.

She knew men like Dante didn’t do things like that without expecting something in return.

He hadn’t called her or shown up at the hospital, but his presence was everywhere.

He was staking his claim from the food deliveries to the discreet protection his men provided.

Annabelle clenched her fists.

She had to confront him.

She had to find out exactly what he wanted.

She needed to know what he expected.

As the day wore on and the neighbors finally trickled out, Annabelle sat in the kitchen, her mind racing.

Cathy was excitedly chattering about her new room, and Mauve had fallen asleep in her new recliner.

The house was quiet, but Annabelle’s thoughts were anything but.

She couldn’t let this continue.

She couldn’t let Dante weave his way any deeper into their lives.

But as much as she hated the thought, she couldn’t deny the truth.

She owed him too much now.

And Dante Cazador wasn’t the kind of man to forget a debt.