Chapter 9

Chapter 9:

Her pockets were empty.

Eight months earlier, following that call with Eric, he had spewed nothing but cruelty.

Yet, the financial support he promised never materialized.

Hadley had drained her savings. With no way to afford her apartment anymore, she ended up in a run-down neighborhood. She never reached out to him for financial help again.

The thought of being labeled a parasite was unbearable.

After moving, Hadley managed to secure some part-time work, balancing it with her studies.

Her earnings were limited, but through careful budgeting, she made enough to sustain herself.

As she drifted off to sleep, the night erupted with cries of alarm.

“Fire!”

The shout pierced the air.

“Escape!”

Roused abruptly, Hadley leaped from her bed and threw open her door to a scene of utter chaos. Smoke engulfed the corridor as flames danced violently.

Her complexion drained of color in an instant.

“Hadley!”

Her neighbor, a fellow student, was frantic with worry as he caught sight of her.

“Why haven’t you fled? It’s a fire! Get out now!”

“Right, got it!”

In a rush, Hadley spun around to grab her backpack.

She moved to venture deeper into her apartment, but her neighbor’s firm grip stopped her.

𝖀𝗽𝗅𝗈𝖆𝖉 𝖙𝗋𝗮𝖈𝖊𝖉 𝖙𝗈 𝗀ⲁ𝗅𝗇𝗈ν𝖊𝗅𝘀⧉𝖼𝗈𝗆

“Are you out of your mind? Why are you heading back in? Leave immediately!”

“I must!”

Hadley’s frustration was clear as she stamped her foot.

Inside, her savings lay—every single penny she had painstakingly gathered for her baby’s future needs: hospital bills, diapers, and baby formula.

“I need to retrieve it!”

Hadley moved to step further, but at that moment, a flaming beam from the ceiling crashed down in front of her.

Hadley instinctively stepped back, narrowly avoiding injury.

The way forward was now obstructed by debris.

“Hadley! Escape now!”

“NO!”

With a desperate shake of her head, she couldn’t consider leaving. Breaking away, she made a reckless dash into the danger.

A fierce blast of wind propelled the fire closer to her. Turning swiftly, Hadley felt the flames lick at her lower back, eliciting a sharp wince of pain.

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