Chapter 7: Pressured

“Sandra, you know that what you’re asking me to do is impossible... I know nothing about the world you people belong to... I don’t even know where to find Rigor Buenaflor.” There was desperation in Irene’s voice.

She knew it was impossible for her to have any connection to people from the underworld. She was nothing more than an ordinary citizen who had somehow found herself playing a role in the lives of the Montecillos—a role she was beginning to regret.

“I’ll say it again... that’s your problem!” Sandra pressed her index finger against Irene’s forehead.

Irene tried to reach for Sandra’s hand, but Sandra shoved her hard, causing her face to nearly hit the cold hospital floor.

“I’m warning you, Irene! Prepare your mother’s grave if you fail to find Rigor Buenaflor!”

Before Irene could even catch her breath, Sandra had already turned her back on her. She could still hear Sandra’s sharp, mocking laughter echoing throughout the hallway as she walked away. Several nurses and doctors nearby stared in their direction. But since the Montecillos were among the owners of the hospital, none of them dared to intervene.

Irene quickly got to her feet. She wiped away her tears before entering the ICU once again.

“Don’t worry, mom... I’ll find a way to keep your treatment going. I’m willing to do anything, just to keep you alive a little longer.”

After kissing her mother’s forehead, Irene left the hospital once again.

As she stood outside waiting for a jeepney to take her home, reality slowly began to sink in. The truth was, she had no idea where to begin. She knew it was almost impossible for her to find Rigor Buenaflor after what had happened the night before. And because of that, anxiety began to overwhelm her.

But she couldn’t give up. She had to find a way before it was too late for her mother.

As Irene made her way home, she could already feel the scrutinizing eyes of their neighbors from a distance. She could hear their hushed whispers as well. She chose to ignore them and continued walking until she reached the front of their house.

Irene couldn’t stop her tears from falling as she opened the wooden door. A deafening silence greeted her the moment she stepped inside the home she shared with her mother. It was so different from what she had grown accustomed to—the lively voice of her mother always welcoming her home.

Through her blurred vision, she looked around the house. Every corner held a story. Every part of their home carried both happy and painful memories.

Like a candle slowly burning out, Irene sank into the bamboo chair. Her mother used to sit there and read pocketbooks during her afternoon rest. It was also where she often fell asleep while waiting for Irene to come home at night.

“I have to find a way to pay for your treatment, mom...” Irene whispered as she wiped the tears from her cheeks.

She was still lost in the moment when she heard a soft knock on the door, followed by someone quietly calling her name.

“Irene?”

When the door opened, Irene saw her cousin, Leni.

Irene immediately composed herself before standing up. “Did you find the thing I asked you to look for?”

“Ahh... umm... You mean the one you called me about earlier? Irene, there’s a problem...”

Irene furrowed her brows. “Why? You didn’t find it?”

“I-I mean... umm~”

Leni hadn’t even finished speaking when they heard loud knocks coming from the door. Both of them immediately stood up to see who it was.

“Oh, why haven’t you moved the things out yet? Didn’t I make it clear with your mother that this house should already be vacant by now?” an older woman demanded, standing with her hands on her hips as she confronted Irene and Leni. Three large, heavily built men stood behind her.

“Please, just give us a moment, Mrs. Salvacion. My cousin just got home...” Leni hurried outside to approach the woman.

“Oh, no! Goodness, you people are certainly difficult to deal with!” The woman turned to the men accompanying her and barked out an order. “Fine! You three, go inside that house and take everything out! My daughter Tootchie’s belongings will be arriving soon! I won’t have anything delaying her move!”

Confused, Irene scratched her head before finally stepping outside. “Wait a minute, please. What’s going on? Why are you telling us to take our things out?”

The woman raised an eyebrow.

“Don’t interfere! And where is Loida?! We have an agreement concerning this house!”

The woman’s eyes nearly bulged with fury as she looked around, clearly searching for Leni’s mother.

“My mother owns this house...” Irene began, but before she could finish, the woman cut her off.

“I don’t care! If your mother really owns this house, then you’d better redeem it!”

“R-Redeem it?” Irene looked at Leni in confusion. “Aunt Loida pawned our house? H-How much?”

“Just one million!” the sharp-tongued woman snapped.

One corner of her lips curled upward as she looked at Irene mockingly.

“Well? Are you going to redeem it?”

“W-What?” Irene felt as though she might collapse right where she stood. “I-I don’t have that kind of money...” The words barely escaped her lips.

“Well, then, vacate the house because it belongs to me now!”

Irene’s tears finally spilled uncontrollably.

She had never imagined that, on top of worrying about her mother’s medical treatment, they would also lose their home.

The one thing she thought she could rely on to save her mother’s treatment was now something she could no longer count on.

“Now, hurry up and get your things out of there! And don’t force me to have them hauled away in a garbage truck!”

There was nothing Irene and Leni could do.

The woman climbed into her vehicle, and moments later, she sped away with the three men who had accompanied her.