Bound By A Broken Night novel Chapter 228

r 228

His hands continued to move, adjusting the fruits, keeping himself occupied.

“This fruit stand…” he gestured around him, “I only started it last week. While we wait for the crops to grow and be ready for harvest, at least we’ll have some kind of income.” He smiled faintly.

“Mr. Romero lent us some money with interest, of course.”

Cassie’s gaze drifted over the modest stand, then to the quiet, nearly empty road stretching beyond it. She could already imagine what this would become in a few weeks-struggle layered upon struggle.

“How much interest did Mr. Romero give you?” she asked gently.

The man brightened a little. “He usually charges fifteen percent,” he said, almost proudly.

“But since we know each other, he lowered it to ten percent per month.”

He smiled as though it were a blessing.

Cassie’s chest tightened. The sincerity of his relief made it harder to bear.

“My son didn’t agree with me taking the loan,” he added, shaking his head lightly.

“But I insisted. I had to do something to help… especially now that I can’t work on the farm.” He pointed to his abdomen.

“I just recovered from appendicitis.”

Cassie’s expression softened. “He’s right,” she said quietly. “You shouldn’t have taken the loan.”

“I know,” he admitted, though there was no regret in his tone-only acceptance.

“But this is the only way I could think of to help them. They’ve already been trying to save money… for me.”

He paused, his gaze drifting somewhere far beyond the road.

“I plan to go to the city,” he continued, more softly now.

“To find my sister. Even if all that’s left is her grave… I want to bring her home.”

His voice grew firmer, despite the fragility behind it.

“I can’t let illness stop me. It’s been too many years since she left.” A faint, weary smile touched his lips.

“We tried looking for her before… but we didn’t know where to begin”

His hands stilled briefly before he resumed arranging the fruits.

“So we came back home,” he said quietly

“Failed.”

Cassie felt it her composure slipping, cracking under the weight of everything she had just heard for a moment, she thought she might lose it entirely. But she held on

“I… I’m actually looking for a fruit supplier,” she said suddenly, the words tumbling out before she could stop their

“L’ take all of these.”

The man froze.

He stared at her, disbelief spreading across his face as though he hadn’t heard her right

Before she could lose control completely, she rushed forward and pressed all the money into his hands-far more than what the fruits were worth, more than the entire stall itself.

“I-I’ll come back later with people to pick everything up,” she managed to say, her voice strained, barely holding together

And before he could respond before he could question, refuse, or thank her- she turned away.

She almost ran.

“This is too much, Miss!” the man called after her, his voice rising in alarm.

“I’ll count it and return the rest when you come back for the fruits!”

His words followed her, but she didn’t dare look back.

If she did, she knew she would break.

Cassie hurried toward the vehicle waiting by the roadside, her vision already blurring, the moment she opened the door, KİMƏ slipped inside as if escaping something she could no longer face

“Cassie “Ashton’s voice was low, threaded with concern

But before he could say anything more, she collapsed into him

Her hands clutched at his shirt as the subs finally tore free, shaking her entire bosly raw, was untrollable, in though she had been holding them in for far too long

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