Chapter 2

The entire place fell silent. Not a word was spoken.

Less than two seconds later, the crowd's attitude changed completely. They swarmed around me, patting my shoulders and offering me cigarettes.

"Come on, man! We were wrong last time. We got carried away!"

"Lives are at stake here! Fix the electrical system first. We can work out the money afterward!"

"We'll give you a bonus when you're done! We won't let you work for nothing!"

Robert quickly seized the opportunity to backtrack, thumping his chest as he made his promise. "Hey, I didn't understand the situation last time! Don't worry. Go ahead and make the repairs. I'll write you a statement right here and now!

"It'll only take a minute to write. I'll take full responsibility for everything. You won't have to pay a single cent!"

Watching Robert pound his chest and make promises, I felt a lump of bitterness lodge in my throat.

Three months ago, my wife had been critically ill in the hospital, waiting for money for surgery. I'd knelt in Robert's office, banging my forehead against the floor until it bled, begging him for that very statement.

All I wanted was for him to explain that I hadn't performed unauthorized repairs. He had been the one who asked me to help.

My knees had gone numb from kneeling, and my voice was raw from begging.

But Robert had remained seated in his leather chair without even lifting his eyelids. He'd merely waved his hand in irritation.

The security guards had immediately stepped forward, grabbed my arms, and started dragging me out.

I'd clung to the doorframe until my fingernails split.

One of the guards kicked me in the lower back, sending me flying into a trash can. The metal bin toppled over, spilling garbage all over me.

Before I could even recover, the hospital called.

The doctor told me my wife had suffered a sudden heart attack. Because we'd fallen behind on our medical bills, some of her medication had been discontinued. They'd failed to save her.

She was gone.

One minute. That was all it would have taken to save my wife's life.

"Mr. Hoffman, that statement of yours sure is precious." My voice was hoarse as I stared into his eyes. "My wife waited three days for it. In the end, she never got it."

Robert's smile faltered, but he quickly forced it back onto his face. "Let's put the past behind us for now, man. Right now—"

"Put it behind us?" I jerked my head up, my eyes bloodshot. "My wife is dead! And you want me to put it behind me?"

My shout left every merchant around us frozen in place.

Robert's mouth twitched. A flicker of impatience passed through his eyes. "Fine, fine, whatever you say. Just fix the electrical system first. We'll settle everything afterward."

"Settle?" I took a step forward, gripping the bag of money so tightly that my knuckles turned white.

"Tell me, how are you going to settle the debt for my wife's life? How are you going to make up for that one-minute statement you refused to write?"

I swept my gaze over the merchants gathered around us. Their faces were plastered with fake smiles, but all they cared about was their merchandise.

"What was it you just said? That you'd give me a bonus?

"You said all the right things last time, too. Then you turned around and surrounded my home, calling me a fly-by-night electrician and frightening my wife so badly that she hid inside, afraid to make a sound!

"My wife had a heart condition. You people blocked our door for three days. She couldn't sleep for a single one of them!

"Why weren't you so willing to work things out when it came to money back then?"

Some people in the crowd lowered their heads. Others turned away, but most responded with impatient clicks of their tongues.

Robert's expression darkened completely. He stepped toward me and shoved me hard in the chest.

I stumbled backward twice before crashing into a pillar. The impact jolted my entire body, and a metallic sweetness rose in my throat.

"That's enough! If this fire spreads today, you won't get away unscathed either."

Leaning against the pillar, I slowly straightened up. "My wife is already dead. What else do I have left to run from? I'll pay back the entire million. Every last dollar.

"But as for this electrical system, let whoever wants to fix it do so. I'm not touching it."

Just then, a deafening blast rang out from the direction of the electrical room.