His call came not long after I’d gotten home and finally sat down to rest. The background was chaotic–screaming, crying.
I could hear Dorothy wailing like a banshee. “Alisha, can you come over? I need to talk to you.“}]
“Come where?” I replied coolly. “I am home.”
There was a pause. Then, Nelson’s voice came back, “Your father’s keepsake… it’s still here with me. Don’t you want to come get it?” My chest tightened. How the heck did I forget about it?!!
The night before our wedding, I had given Nelson one of the only thing’s my father left me–a handcrafted silver pendant. An antique. Sentimental, yes, but also worth a decent sum.
It wouldn’t have been enough to cover all of Dan’s loans, but it could’ve helped.}}
Ah… I want it back.
When I arrived at the Reeds‘ house, the place was in complete chaos–just like I remembered from my previous life.
Bright red paint had been splashed across their front door and the stairwell walls were covered with threats written in huge, angry letters: Pay what you owe.
Inside, the house was a wreck.
Dorothy was collapsed on the floor, sobbing into a pile of broken furniture. “Oh God, what did I do to deserve this? I might as well die–we should all just die!”
Dan was curled up in a corner of the couch, silent and shaking. Meanwhile, Nelson… he was sitting calmly in a chair, waiting for me like nothing had happened.
“Alisha,” he said, his tone heavy with false sincerity, “Dan owes more than we could ever repay. Even if we sold the house, it wouldn’t be enough.”
“Well, that’s a real shame,” I said, standing just inside the doorway. “Now, where’s my father’s pendant?“}
Nelson sighed and pulled it from his pocket–the same antique silver piece I’d entrusted to him.
“You said it was valuable. I was planning to sell it… use it to pay off the debt,” he said, like it was the most logical thing in the world. “Unless you’re willing to help us out this time,”
I let out a low laugh.
God, the audacity! I couldn’t believe he had the nerve to say that out loud–with a straight face.
“Nelson,” I said coolly, “you seem to have forgotten–we’re not connected anymore. You signed the papers. My life has nothing to do with you now and yours sure as hell isn’t my concern.“}
Nelson narrowed his eyes. “Don’t you want your father’s silver pendant back?“}
I scoffed. “Go ahead and sell it. I’ll just buy it back later.”
I smiled, then added casually, “My latest project wrapped up last week. The company brought in a nice chunk of revenue.“>
Silence.
Every member of the Reeds froze like they’d just been slapped. They all slowly stood up, closing in together, their eyes drilling into me. “What are you saying?” Dorothy finally snapped. “The project’s finished? I thought it collapsed!”
I took a couple of steps back, just outside the wreck of their house.
“Well,” I said with a shrug, “some projects fail, some don’t. I thought this one was a loss too, Until I left you. And wouldn’t you know it? Things turned around.”}
I let that sink in for a second before adding with a mock–thoughtful expression, “Do you think maybe your family was bad luck? Because ever since the divorce, everything’s been going smoothly.“}]
That lit a fire in Dorothy’s eyes.}
“Great!” she shouted, her tone suddenly upbeat and greedy. “Then you can pay off Dan’s debt!”
I almost laughed. There it was–the desperation dressed up as entitlement. Like clockwork. “Absolutely not.”
“But he’s family!” she barked. “Dan shares the same blood as Nelson! You owe it to him!”
I tilted my head. “Funny. I don’t share that blood, so why would I owe him anything?”
Dorothy blinked in shock, but only for a second before screeching, “You’re carrying our bloodline! That baby in your belly belongs to our family!” She added, “That child is a Reed–you have to help us!”
With her face twisted in rage, she lunged toward me.
But my bodyguard, who’d been standing quietly by the door this whole time, stepped forward and blocked her cleanly, shoving her back without a second thought.
Nelson caught her in his arms, but his eyes locked on me, full of disbelief and suspicion.
Before he could even speak, I raised a hand to my bodyguard and nodded for him to stand guard in front of me.”
“When the baby’s born,” I said calmly, “she’ll carry my name. She’ll be registered under my household. And she’ll never have anything to do with the Reeds.“
