Gwen's voice exploded through the phone speaker once again.
"Sending Miles money?! Who the hell gives money to a gambling addict! What kind of absolute psycho does that!"
"Miles said he was done gambling and Zander just believed him? If you could trust a word out of a gambler's mouth, there wouldn't be a four hundred and seventy thousand dollar loan shark debt!"
"Ten grand! He threw ten grand right into a fire pit! That's barely enough for Miles to play two hands of poker! He's not helping with cash flow, he's basically delivering takeout to the casino!"
Eliza leaned against the wall at the corner of the hallway, closing her eyes as she listened to Gwen's rant.
"You haven't even seen the worst part," Eliza said, her voice dripping with exhaustion. "After he sent that message, he followed up with another one saying, 'I just wanted to help shoulder some of the burden. You can't carry it all alone.'"
"'I'm here for everything.'"
"Let me translate that for you—he's waiting for me to praise him."
Gwen's voice abruptly cut off.
There was a second and a half of dead silence.
Then she let out a shriek that practically blew the roof off.
"He's actually waiting for a gold star?!"
"Does he think he's a kindergartener who handed a lost eraser to the teacher and wants a sticker?"
"Eliza, tell me the truth! Did he accidentally leave his brain in the delivery room when he was born?"
Eliza's lips twitched in an expression that hovered somewhere between a bitter smile and a cold scoff.
"It's so ridiculous I actually laughed. What do you think Miles is going to do with that ten grand?"
"Is it even a question?" Gwen scoffed. "He'll be at the casino in five minutes, lose it all in ten, and get kicked to the curb in twenty. Then he'll turn right around and beg you for more cash, all while silently cursing Zander a thousand times over for being a cheap bastard who only gave him ten grand."
"Yeah," Eliza replied faintly. "So right now, Miles is probably thinking: Since there's a sucker handing out free cash, I'll just cry poverty a few more times. Ask for ten grand first, then twenty, and once I get twenty, I'll ask for fifty."
"And Zander actually thinks he's doing a good deed."

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