The Debt That Changed Everything

CHAPTER 9

Gabby's hand trembled around the phone.

"I know where your father is."

The man's voice still echoed in her mind.

She sat frozen on the edge of her bed, unable to form a response.

"Who are you?"

She managed to whisper but the man was silent.

"How do you know my father?" She asked again.

The line remained quiet.

Gabby tightened her grip on the phone.

"Please, if you know where he is, just tell me, please."

A faint breath came through the speaker, then the caller's voice returned.

"You shouldn't be asking questions, Gabriella."

Her heart sank.

"Then why call me?"

There was another pause.

"Because you deserve to know that your father didn't simply disappear."

Gabby's breath seized.

"What does that mean?"

"What are you trying to…"

The caller immediately hung up on her before she could complete her statement.

She stared at the screen with so much confusion.

The room suddenly felt unbearably quiet.

Her father hadn't simply disappeared.

What was that supposed to mean?

She wanted to call the number back, but when she tried, the call wouldn't connect.

Gabby lowered her phone slowly.

For several minutes, she sat there, lost in her thoughts.

Then her eyes moved towards the drawer beside her bed.

The strange object belonging to her father was still inside.

She had no idea why, but something told her the object and the phone call were connected.

Yet, one thing she knew for sure was that she couldn't tell Manuel.

Not yet.

The following morning, Gabby barely touched her breakfast on the dining table.

She was still thinking about the mysterious caller when Ms. Bennett approached her.

"Mrs. Reyes?"

Gabby looked up.

"Yes?"

"Mr. Antonio would like to see you in his study."

Gabby straightened immediately.

"Now?"

"He said whenever you're finished."

Gabby nodded.

"Alright, I'll go."

A few minutes later, she stood at the entrance of Antonio's study room and knocked softly on the door..

"Come in."

She opened the door.

Antonio looked up from his desk and smiled.

"Gabriella."

"Mr. Reyes."

"Please, sit."

Gabby took the chair opposite him.

Antonio studied her for a moment.

"You look troubled."

Gabby's fingers tightened in her lap.

"I'm fine." She managed to say.

Antonio smiled faintly.

"That answer rarely means someone is fine."

Antonio leaned back.

"I won't force you to tell me anything you're not ready to share."

Gabby looked at him with quiet surprise.

"Thank you."

Everywhere went silent for a few seconds.

Then Antonio asked gently,

"Tell me, Gabriella, how are you coping in your marriage to my son?"

Gabby's gaze dropped as she was not expecting the question.

"I'm still learning."

Antonio waited to hear more.

She took a deep breath.

"Mr. Reyes isn't unkind."

A faint smile touched Antonio's lips.

"But?"

Gabby hesitated.

"He's just... difficult to understand."

Antonio chuckled softly.

"That sounds like Manuel."

Gabby looked up.

"You agree?"

"I raised him."

That earned a small smile from her.

It was her first genuine smile since that morning.

Antonio's expression softened.

"Manuel has always carried responsibility more easily than emotion."

Gabby listened carefully.

"Sometimes, the people who seem the strongest are simply the ones who have forgotten how to let others stand beside them."

Gabby's thoughts immediately went to Manuel.

The cold expression, the sharp words, the way employees became silent whenever he entered a room, and yet, yesterday, he had noticed that she was tired before she admitted it.

She didn't understand him.

Perhaps she didn't have to.

Antonio changed the subject.

"Tell me something about yourself."

Gabby blinked.

"About myself?"

"Yes."

She smiled awkwardly.

"There's not much to tell."

"I doubt that."

He leaned forward.

"Who was Gabriella Edian before she became Mrs. Reyes?"

The question touched something inside her.

Gabby looked toward the window.

"I painted."

Antonio's eyes brightened.

"I remember hearing that you were an artist."

"I still am."

There was quiet determination in her voice.

"I hope so."

Gabby smiled faintly and lowered her head.

"Painting was the one thing that always made sense to me."

"And your father?"

Her smile faded.

"My father encouraged me."

Antonio noticed the change immediately.

"You miss him."

Gabby looked down.

"Every day."

She swallowed hard, trying not to cry.

"He made mistakes, a lot of them, but he was still my father."

Antonio said nothing.

Gabby appreciated that.

She didn't need another person telling her what Chris had done wrong.

She already knew.

"I just wish I knew where he was."

The words slipped out before she could stop them.

Antonio's eyes rested on her.

"Perhaps one day you will."

Gabby looked at him.

"Do you believe that?"

"I believe some questions take time to answer."

His words were strangely comforting.

But they also reminded her of the phone call.

She lowered her gaze.

Antonio noticed her hesitation but didn't pressure her.

Instead, he smiled and said.

"I have one request."

Gabby looked up.

"Request?"

"Yes, and please, don't worry, it's not an obligation."

She relaxed slightly.

"I'd like you to have breakfast with me once a week."

Gabby stared at him.

"Breakfast?"

Antonio nodded.

"The mansion can be too large sometimes."

His smile became softer.

"And your husband is rarely available enough to have a proper conversation."

Gabby couldn't help smiling.

"I noticed."

"Then perhaps you can keep an old man company."

"You're not old."

Antonio laughed.

"Tell that to my knees."

Gabby laughed too.

For the first time since entering the Reyes family, she felt completely at ease.

"I'd like that."

"Good."

Antonio nodded.

"Then it's settled."

Gabby stood up.

"Thank you."

As she reached the door, Antonio spoke again.

"Gabriella."

She turned.

"Yes?"

"Whatever happens, don't allow this family or this marriage to make you forget who you are."

Her smile faded into something more thoughtful.

"I won't."

She left the study.

Antonio remained seated, watching the closed door.

For a long moment, he said nothing.

Then his gaze moved towards an old photograph resting on his desk.

A younger Manuel stood beside him.

Antonio sighed.

"Perhaps, you needed someone like her." He murmured.

Gabby returned to her bedroom.

She closed the door behind her and leaned against it as she let out a slow, deep breath.

For the first time that morning, she smiled genuinely.

Her conversation with Antonio replayed in her mind.

The way he had listened without judging her, the way he asked about her life and about her marriage to his son, and the way he had spoken about Manuel.

She had not expected to feel so comfortable and safe around him or to even laugh with him.

Her smile slowly faded.

She had not felt that way around anyone in a long time.

Somehow, sitting across from Antonio had reminded her of what she had lost.

A father.

She swallowed the lump in her throat.

Maybe it was too soon to call him that.

But for the first time since Chris disappeared, Gabby realized something she had not expected.

Perhaps she had found a father figure in the one family she never intended to become part of.