Chapter 5 - The Paid Debt
Emma returned to work three days later.
She looked a little more rested, but the anxiety in her eyes was still there.
She was dusting my bookshelves when her cheap flip phone buzzed.
She flinched, expecting another threat from the debt collectors.
She answered it on the third ring.
"Hello? ... Yes, this is Emma."
I watched her from my desk, pretending to read a ledger.
"Wait, what? Paid in full? Are you sure?"
Her hand trembled. She dropped the duster.
"Who paid it? ... A proxy? I don't understand."
She hung up the phone and stared blankly at the wall.
Thirty thousand dollars. Wiped clean in an afternoon.
She turned slowly and looked at me.
I didn't look up from my paperwork.
"You did this," she said, her voice shaking.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," I lied seamlessly.
She walked over to my desk, planting her hands on the polished wood.
"Nobody else knows about that debt, Mr. Romano. And nobody else has that kind of money."
"If I were you, I'd say thank you and get back to dusting."
"I can't pay you back!" she cried, the tears finally falling.
"Nobody asked you to."
"Why did you do it?"
I finally looked up, meeting her desperate gaze.
"Because you're the only person in this house who brings me my pills without acting like I'm a broken toy."
"And because Rossi's men are scum."
She didn't say thank you. She didn't have to.
She just walked around the desk, knelt beside my wheelchair, and rested her head against my arm.
May you like
My whole body stiffened.
But I didn't push her away.
