Love and Debt

After a month, James announced her pregnancy. Paolo seemed unhappy about it and would beat her every time he got annoyed with her. James didn't know about it at first, but when it started to get more intense, she started having visible bruises. 

Nina suffered from Paolo's hands for two years. She didn't even know how she and the baby in her womb survived his beatings. James couldn't do anything about it, but when he had enough, he took all her punishments.

Paolo stopped the beatings when he was diagnosed with cancer. He became weak and bedridden, then James started acting the Clan's head on behalf of his father.

Brie grew up close to James, but she knew that he wasn't his father. She understood that no one should know that his father wasn't James because the truth would put their lives in danger.

Sometimes Brie would ask her about his father and why he wasn't around. Nina told her that she will tell her the truth someday and she should not feel any anger towards her real dad.

She was a smart girl and kind-hearted. She had never made Nina worry. Brie had a similarity with his father. Like Andrew, she loved eating bacon and egg in the morning. She also loved pasta cooked by her mother.

Nina gulped when James said to tell Andrew about Brie, but she wasn't sure if he would be happy to know about her.

"I'll think about it. I'm scared that she would reject her. I'm already aware that he hates me, that I could accept. But if he rejects our daughter, it would break my heart even more." She said.

James and Nina didn't know that Brie was actually awake when they were talking about her father. She was four years old, but she understood that the parents she grew up with didn't love each other.

Her parents didn't lie to her. They told her that James wasn't his father, but the guy was really nice to her and her mother. She could feel his love towards them. If she would ask them, James was the best dad for her. 

But she overheard her parents arguing about another man months ago. She didn't hear his name back then but in their argument, her mother said about being forced into their marriage and that she already paid her debt to James' father.

She still couldn't understand the real reason why her mother had to marry James, but Brie knew that her real father didn't know she existed. She loved James like a real dad, but in her heart, she wanted to see her real father.

Now, she knew who it was. His name is Andrew. From what she remembered earlier, it was the guy with black hair who dressed in casual clothing.

She wanted to see him again and talk to him, and maybe he would at least recognize her. Or maybe feel that she was his daughter.

When they arrived home, Nina put Brie carefully on the bed. She kissed her on the forehead and went out of her bedroom.

Brie opened her eyes and quickly get off her bed. She walked towards her study table then opened her laptop. With her pink headphone on, she sat down in front of her computer and typed in some words.

She first search Luke Wilson and looked for the name Andrew that might appear on Luke's social media accounts or any news related. 

After a few minutes, she saw a photo of Luke with four other men. One of them was Andrew.

"It says here, from left to right, Jayden Richards, Percival Jackson, Luke Wilson, Kyle Hulls, and Andrew Cross." She whispered.

"Andrew Cross. That's his name." She whispered again.

Brie smiled and felt excited. At her age, she already knew everything about technology. She was homeschooled and never allowed to get out for the past four years, and the only thing that kept her life less boring was her laptop and cellphone. 

She typed in 'Andrew Cross' and started searching for him. She saw his Facebook, but the last update he had was four years ago. She also found his Twitter and Instagram accounts, but all of them weren't updated anymore.

Brie felt like her father stopped communicating four years ago. She scrolled down on his Instagram profile, checking some of his pictures. Her eyes widened when she saw a photo of her mother. It was taken in a room and she was sitting by the window with the background of the Eiffel Tower.

"The girl who stole my heart. You are the only one who conquered my world. I love you, my little wife." 

That was what it says in the caption of the post. Brie felt the love of his father towards her mother. What happened to them? And why did he call her, wife? Are they married? She thought to herself.

She felt a sudden pain in her chest. She knew something had happened four years ago, and she was determined to know what it was.

She took a deep breath then turned off her laptop. Then she walked towards her closet, took a small bag, and put a dress inside.

Andrew was sitting in the living room, thinking about what happened during dinner. It broke his heart to see James and Nina with a child. He envied James. He was with Nina for longer than him, but he was unlucky. They got married and had a child, but it was dead when it was born.

After Nina left him, he never wanted to have another girlfriend. He lost interest in women and just engrossed himself with work.

He sighed then went to his bedroom. He was currently staying at his old condo unit after Nina left. He couldn't bear to come home to Primrose, and just asked Nina's parents to live there instead.

He was about to sleep when he heard the doorbell rang. He frowned. It was already eleven in the evening, who the hell would come to his house at this hour? He thought.

He was pissed when he got out of his bedroom and rushed towards the door.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" He yelled when he opened the door, only to be surprised to see a little girl standing in front of him.

It was Nina's daughter, Brie.