A DEBT YOU must REPAY

​CHAPTER 1... ​"Astra, I'm sorry—" Those were the last words she heard from her sister, Allegra. ​Astra Valmont and Allegra Valmont were identical twins. They looked alike in every way, but personality was the only thing that tore them apart. ​Astra being a licensed pediatric doctor, at 28 she already ran a small clinic downtown where she lived the life she had always dreamt of. The quiet, peaceful, and cozy life. ​After getting a call from Allegra, Astra stared at her phone for a long while before sliding the phone into her purse. She didn't think much of it because whenever her sister was drunk, she always acted out of character. And since it had been months since they last saw each other, maybe this was her way of telling Astra she missed her. ​Astra got out of her clinic and locked the doors. She got into her car and drove back home. ​Arriving at the Valmont humble abode, her mother, Camilla, a beautiful fair lady in her early fifties, stood at the stairs impatiently waiting for her. ​Astra walked up to her, and she pulled her by the wrist into the house. ​Camilla switched on the TV with trembling hands. ​Astra stared at her mother, confused about why she was acting off. "Mom, is everything okay?" she asked in a low tone. ​Camilla didn't turn to her; she only pointed at the TV with her eyes fixed on it. ​Astra's gaze landed on the TV, then she dropped her handbag gently on the floor before taking a seat. ​On the TV was Allegra, and her husband, Matteo, standing next to her as they waved happily to the cameras at the governor's birthday party. ​Astra massaged her temples as she watched her sister carefully on the TV. ​Camilla turned to her with a wide smile on her lips. ​"I bet you can't take your eyes off her, right? Isn't my daughter so beautiful... I still can't get used to the fact that she's mingling with the big names in LA," she squealed loudly, joining her hands together to hold in her excitement. ​Astra ignored her mother's comment, her eyes still fixed on the TV. ​Why is she putting on such a tight dress? She's obviously pregnant... Is she trying to get herself killed or kill the baby? she said in her head, obviously disturbed by the little beads of sweat on her sister's head. ​Camilla stomped her feet on the floor to get Astra's attention. ​Astra shook her head tiredly and picked up her bag, then left for her room. ​"Hey, Astra, aren't you going to say anything? You're getting boring by the day... You better start putting yourself out there so you can learn to talk some more," Camilla blurted frustratedly and turned back to the TV. ​The smile immediately resumed on her lips. "Oh, that's my girl!" she mumbled excitedly. ​Astra shut the door behind her and leaned against it tiredly. ​She didn't respond to her mom because she knew her mom had always loved being out in public. If things hadn't gone bad since their father died, her mom would probably still be attending Met Galas, going to parties where only the wealthy get to attend. ​Astra's thoughts drifted to Allegra's call from earlier. She took out her phone from her purse and she scrolled through her contact list. Staring at Allegra's number, she contemplated whether she should give her a call or not. ​She wouldn't be drunk-calling me if she's pregnant... Why didn't she tell us she's pregnant? Allegra, you don't look so good. Why are you suddenly keeping secrets? she questioned in her mind and slipped her phone back into her purse. ​She walked to her closet and took off her clothes before stepping into the bathroom to wash up. ​Minutes later, Astra came out to the living room to have some dinner and probably keep her mother company with her presence. But getting to the living room, she found her mother drooling over her pillow, snoring loudly with the TV remote control in her hand. ​Astra wore a half-smile and quietly took the remote from her hand and switched the TV off. ​"Mom, sleeping on the sofa isn't good for your back. Go to your room," she whispered, tapping her lightly on her arm. ​Camilla opened her eyes slowly, while stretching her arms. She sat up slowly. ​"You're done freshening up?" she asked in a sleepy tone. ​Astra nodded while trying to help her up. ​"Too bad, I'm too sleepy. I hoped to keep you company while you had dinner... I heated up your food minutes ago." ​"Thank you, mom. Go to bed!" Astra uttered warmly. ​Camilla staggered her way up to her room. Getting to the door, she turned to Astra and smiled. "Love you, pookie. Good night and don't stay up late!" she uttered and went into her room without waiting for a reply. ​"Love you too, mom," Astra uttered, almost inaudible. ​She walked to the kitchen; her food was all set on the dining table. She sat down and ate quietly, her eyes still drifting back to her phone with Allegra crowding her thoughts. ​After minutes of eating, she grabbed a bottle of beer from the fridge and went to the living room. She sat on the floor and gulped down the whole beer frantically before dialing Allegra's number. ​It rang the first time, second time, and at the third ring, she picked up. ​"Allegra, why are you sorry?" Astra asked swiftly, as though the words had been hanging on her lips for a while. ​Silence from the other end of the call. She removed the phone from her ear just to make sure she wasn't talking to herself. She wasn't that drunk to not have known that. ​"Allegra, why are you quiet?" she asked slowly, as though she was trying to read the background of the call for any clues. ​"My wife's sleeping." The voice came with a wave of arrogance and rudeness. ​Before Astra could utter another word, the line went dead. She checked the time, and it was almost 9 p.m. ​She might have fallen asleep. She's pregnant, those are common hormones, Astra said in her head and dropped her phone by her side and rested her head on the sofa's cushion. ​She felt a sudden wave of uneasiness. Her chest tightened. Her breathing hitched. A sharp pain from her heart jolted her head from the sofa. ​She pressed her chest with her palm with a furrowed brow. "What was that?" ​Astra picked up her phone and left for her room. Walking to her room didn't ease the uneasiness. Her gaze fell on her left hand, and it was trembling slightly. ​What's going on? she thought to yourself worriedly before quietly laying on her bed. ​NEXT MORNING... ​Astra managed to force herself to sleep because she had work in the morning, and skipping sleep was a luxury to her. ​She was still very much asleep when her door burst open loudly. ​"A—Astra," Camilla called out in tears. ​The loud crash of the door pushed Astra off her pillow. She squinted her eyes as she tried to get a less blurry view through the morning sun rays landing on her door where her mom was standing with tears rolling down her cheeks. ​"Astra..." Camilla called out slowly this time as she sat on the floor, unable to hold her weight. ​Astra jumped out of the bed anxiously. She rushed to her mother and bent over. ​"Mom, why are you crying? What happened?" she asked curiously, fear from last night's uneasiness already gripping her. ​Camilla sobbed heavily, unable to utter any words. Tears were already glistening in Astra's eyes. The feeling was uneasy and painful. ​"Mom, please say something," she uttered in a low tone, the tears in her eyes rolling down her cheeks already. ​Camilla pulled Astra into a desperate hug for consolation. ​"It's Allegra. Matteo said she's gone. They brought her with them.... She's outside," Camilla managed to explain. ​Astra's eyes widened and she instantly went numb. She felt her world tilt in a split second. She broke the hug with her mother and walked out of the room, her mind a blank space. ​Camilla ran behind her. "Allegra..." she screamed. ​Astra came out to the living room and there he was, seated in a black customized suit that hugged his body perfectly. Matteo Caldwell, Allegra's husband. ​His eyes were fixed on his wristwatch, like he came to finish up an activity on his schedule list. ​Astra didn't say a word to him. She quietly turned the doorknob open, and right there was a car parked in front of their house. Allegra was still beautifully dressed in the curvy silk gown she wore to the governor's birthday yesterday. She was lying in it peacefully. ​Astra fell on the floor as her knees felt too weak to hold herself up. ​Hot tears streamed down her cheeks effortlessly. ​Allegra's last words to her came ringing back in her ears: 'I'm sorry.' ​Astra exploded, unable to hold it in anymore. "Arrgh..." she screamed, hitting her chest as the pain pierced through every vessel in her heart. ​After minutes of screaming and sobbing outside, she couldn't push herself to go anywhere near the car her sister was in. She came back into the living room to confront Matteo. ​"I guess you've had enough time to sob. Now let's talk business!" Matteo stated coldly, his voice cold and heavy with no hint of remorse. ​Astra glared at him, anger boiling inside of her. She walked to him angrily and slapped him hard across the face. ​Matteo's face shifted in the direction of the slap, but then he turned back to her, glaring at her. ​"Are you trying to add to the debt your family owes mine?" he fired angrily. ​Astra looked at her mother, obviously confused by his words, but Camilla wasn't there anymore; she was deep into her tears. ​"What debt?" Astra forced out. ​Matteo moved away from her and took out a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his face, as though the handkerchief had healing powers. ​"A blood debt your sister couldn't repay." ​Astra blinked multiple times just to digest or process what she just heard. ​"How dare you?" ​"How dare you stand a few feet away from my late sister and lie..." she fired angrily, tears rolling down her cheeks, but she wiped them off aggressively. ​Matteo adjusted his suit and sat down on the sofa. ​"I didn't come all the way here to tell you history. I came to collect a debt. History is for your father to tell." ​Astra clenched both her fists angrily. "My father is late. He died five years ago, that's the least you should know for being married to my sister for years." ​Camilla walked up to Astra and spun her around to face her. ​"Mom, what's he saying? What debt?" she asked in tears. ​Camilla's eyes were all red and puffy; she could barely blink freely. ​"He's right, Astra. We owe the Caldwells a debt..." she paused as she glanced at Matteo, who was already on his phone, typing seriously. ​"You better tell her the truth," he chipped in, with his gaze still on his phone. ​Astra held her mother's shoulders as every word felt strange to her ears. "Since when, mom? We've been pulling our expenses off since the bankruptcy. What debt is this that I don't know of? What does any of this have to do with Allegra?" ​Camilla whimpered at the sound of Allegra's name. ​"There was a business deal between your father and Matteo's father. They were supposed to go together because it had something to do with some syndicate. Your father couldn't meet up because he went with us to the hospital when Allegra fell sick. His absence made the business deal a life-threatening one; Mr. Caldwell got killed and both families agreed to repay the debt one day by drawing up a contract. I don't know much about what was drafted in the contract, but your dad did... I have no clue why Allegra is involved. She had nothing to do with it," Camilla cried, holding her daughter's hand tight. ​Astra turned to Matteo, fury burning in her eyes. "What did you do to Allegra? Did you kill her to settle your debt?"