Chapter 232

“Please spare me,” Sheila pleaded, tears streaming down her face.

“Don’t play innocent, young lady. Just because you’ve played dead and latched onto a wealthy man doesn’t mean all your problems disappear. Your benefactor has abandoned you, and now you need to find another sugar daddy to clear your mother’s eighty-million-dollar gambling debt. Do that, and maybe we’ll let you off the hook.”

“What? Eighty million? How could there be so much debt?”

“You tell me.”

As they exchanged glances, realization dawned on Sheila. “You’re loan sharks. This is illegal.”

They burst into laughter. “Illegal? Do you think you can lecture us? It’s only right to pay back what’s owed. Your mother signed the IOU herself.”

“I have nothing to do with her anymore. Why should I pay?”

One of the men brandished her birth certificate. “A daughter inherits her mother’s debts. Do you think changing your identity will erase that? Your family’s history is all here. You won’t escape us until every cent is repaid.”

Just then, Leanna returned and asked, with feigned ignorance, “What’s going on? Why is everyone standing?”

Sheila quickly composed herself and sat down, but her appetite had vanished.

“Leanna, I don’t feel well. I want to go home.”

“Is it serious? Should I drive you?”

“No, it’s fine,” Sheila said, fleeing the room.

Leanna watched with cold eyes.

One of the men placed his hand on Leanna’s leg. “Leanna, shall we discuss business?”

She smiled and stood up. “Please excuse me, I’ve paid for today’s bill. Enjoy your meal.”

With that, she left the room, leaving the group bewildered.

Debra had received the surveillance footage. She recognized those men as dangerous figures in the underworld. This video could uncover some of Sheila’s secrets. She listened carefully to their conversation.

“Playing dead? What does that mean?” she pondered aloud.

Just then, her phone rang. Answering it, she heard the voice of a police officer.

“Ms. Frazier? SCPD.”

“It’s me.”

“We’ve identified the anonymous online poster, but…”

“Anything wrong?”

“She’s been deceased for five years.”

“Five years ago? Dead?”

Debra was taken aback. Her mind raced back to the words spoken by the businessmen in the video: “Your mother owes us five years of gambling debts. Just because you’ve played dead and latched onto a wealthy man doesn’t mean all your problems disappear.”

The pieces began to fall into place. Soon, Debra had her answer to Sheila’s secret.

Just then, her office door creaked open. Joe entered and said, “Madam, Mr. Nichols wants me to escort you home.”