CHAPTER 6
1495 Words
CATHERINE
As soon as I opened the door, everyone looked in my direction and I froze without believing what was in front of my eyes.
My mother was in the middle of the living room, in front of my father, who was kneeling on the floor, with his hands behind his back and his face all bruised. Next to him were two heavily armed men. I didn't understand why all this was happening here.
What was going on here?! I thought, anguished.
I searched, but I couldn't find my children anywhere. My God, where are my babies? I asked myself.
“Calm down, she is my daughter!” My mother exclaimed, leaving my father and coming towards me.
"What's going on here?" I asked in shock, looking at everyone. "My children? Where?” I asked desperately.
"So, you're Lucas's daughter?" I heard a man's voice, turned my face to the side, and saw a tall man with light skin, an easy smile on his lips, with a striking look, and, at the same time, cold.
I felt my whole body shiver when he uncrossed his legs, got up from the couch, and came towards me, standing more than one meter and ninety tall. He then said to me, "Don't worry, your children are right in their room watching cartoons, they haven't even seen their grandfather in this pitiful state," he said calmly. "We don't want to traumatize the children, right?!" He asked with a cold smile.
“Don't go near my daughter, young man.” My mom said, stepping in front of me again.
He frowned, and his smile disappeared, giving him the expression of an extremely cold and unfeeling man.
"You are not in a position to ask me for anything else. Just take your grandchildren to the room. Now I suggest you get out of my way so I can talk to your daughter."
The man's voice came out low and cold, making everyone in the room feel afraid just by the timbre of his voice.
"Please don't hurt my daughter." My mother asked in a choked voice, but without moving out of my face.
When I thought the man was going to question her again, he simply raised one of his hands and almost immediately the two men who were with him had their revolvers pointing at my mother's head. I felt my blood freeze in my body when I realized that they were ready to shoot. I quickly held her arm, making her look at me.
"Mom, it's okay, I'll talk to him," I said, trying to show calm.
“Daughter, but what if he does harm to you?” she asked with a tearful voice. “They hurt your father. They could hurt you too,” she said softly.
I took a deep breath, trying to stay calm at that moment. I couldn't lose my composure amidst all this chaos. I didn’t even know how it started.
“It’s okay, Mom, I’m going to talk,” I said, trying to reassure her.
She shook her head negatively.
“I’m running out of patience,” the man I believed to be the leader of the gang said.
“Mom, please.” I practically begged my mother, who eventually nodded.
“Alright,” she said, stepping aside.
I looked at the man in the center of the room and asked,
“What did my father do to deserve to be beaten like this and for you to come terrorize my whole family?”
The man examined me from head to toe before responding.
“I didn’t come to terrorize. I’m just here to collect some debts your father owes me since he owes me a lot of money and someone has to pay the debt.” He looked at my silent father, no longer seeming like the same rude man who lived with us.
“My father isn’t working and...” He lets out a loud laugh that fills the room.
“Ha ha ha, the bad luck is all his and not mine.” He said with no empathy at all.
“Your father has owed me for a long time, but he thought I wouldn’t be able to find him. It turned out that worms like him always get into more trouble, and he ended up right in one of my areas again. When he took more money to support his gambling, drugs, and prostitute habits,” he said, looking at my mother. “Sorry, ma'am, but you should find a better husband.” I noticed his sarcasm in his cold words. “He didn’t care about being unemployed when he used my money for his desires, so I don’t care about anything related to him.
I swallowed hard at his words and said, “Sir, I know my father made a mistake by taking your money, but we don’t have any money and...”
The man interrupted me brusquely with one of his orders.
“Kill the old man.”
“No!” My mother screamed, frightened, seeing the men point their guns at my father. “Sir, I know my husband isn’t the best man, but I don’t want to see him dead.”
“Please, don’t kill my father,” I begged, entering into despair.
The man opened a cold smile and looked at my father, who I saw him grabbing by the hair and pulling his head back, forcing him to look at us.
“Do you see, Lucas, your family begging for mercy from you?” He asked, but my father didn’t respond. “Do you see?” He asked, holding on tighter.
“Y..yes.” My father responded with difficulty.
“You should value these women. If they were anyone else, they’d be grateful to have you out of their lives,” he said to my father, pushing his head forcefully down again. “You don’t have money, and I’m not moved by mere tears.
I took a deep breath before letting it out slowly.
“How much does he owe? I might try to come up with the money,” I said, looking at the man, but knowing that, depending on the amount, it might be impossible to pay it off.
He examined me and then let out a loud laugh.
“Can you get fifty hundred dollars right now to pay me, girl?” he asked.
I widened my eyes in surprise as I put my hands to my mouth, making the pamphlet I was holding fall to the ground.
“That’s a lot of money,” I said, frightened.
The man nodded approvingly.
“Almost nothing, but your father tried to make a fool of me by running away and still having the audacity to rack up more debt. I have to admit, he’s bold.” The sarcasm is vivid in every word that comes out of this man’s mouth.
“Look, I’m looking for a better job, and if I get one, maybe you could let me pay in installments, and I could pay off the debt in a few years,” I said, being honest.
He let out a loud laugh.
“In a few years?” he asked, suddenly becoming serious again.
“That’s not how I work, and even less how I do business, girl!” he responded. I noticed his eyes fell to the ground and focused on the flyer that had fallen from my hands. He quickly looked back at me.
“Well, you’re looking for a job, right?” he asked, resting one hand on his chin. I nodded in agreement. I imagine it’s for the place on that flyer in the corner. I nodded again.
“Hmm... you’re pretty, you’ll certainly attract attention easily. Maybe you can even pay me back faster, girl,” he said.
I’m left confused.
“What?” I asked.
He smiled coldly.
“Your father isn’t going to die, not today,” he said, looking at my father. “But…” He moved closer to me, stopping his body very close to mine. “You’ll have a deadline to pay me, but it will be in the way I want it to be paid.” He gestured for the men, who lowered their weapons and started walking out.
Does this man only speak through gestures? I thought.
“What do you mean?” I dared to ask as I saw him starting to pass by me.
He looked at me sideways and said, “Soon you’ll understand. Go to your interview, and we’ll see each other again soon. Don’t run away, because I’m not a man of mercy and I won’t spare anyone in this house when I find you. Remember, you’ve now taken on the responsibility to get my money, and I will collect it,” he warned coldly, and left our apartment.
I was left confused, but at the same time relieved that he was gone.
- Writer
