Capítulo 8: tough decision

"300K dollars, you can use it to improve this bar, expand it, and make sure your management is good so you don't go bankrupt," Charlie said, handing a medium-sized bag to Robert sitting on the chair across from him.

Robert immediately took the bag, then peeked inside to find a stack of money that made his eyes light up.

"Oh, damn, he's so wealthy!" he whispered.

Charlie looked at Robert with disdain, as if realizing that he had been the source of Angelica's problems all along.

"I'm giving you this money, but it doesn't mean you can have fun," he said with a flat stare.

Robert immediately looked at Charlie.

"You won't know that my people will always watch over you. You have to run this business properly and never harm Angelica's mother. You also have to monitor her health, help her get to the hospital for treatment... everything!"

"But, Sir... if I'm busy taking care of her, then who will handle this bar?" Robert asked, nervously smiling.

"You can use the money to hire employees, not just thugs who will drink your drinks for free!" Charlie exclaimed, occasionally glancing at the three thugs standing near the main door.

The three thugs immediately lowered their heads.

"They're useless," Roger muttered with a sardonic smile.

Charlie looked back at Robert. "The money I gave you is quite a lot. You will make this bar even bigger and earn a substantial profit... You won't have trouble paying employees!"

"Um... alright..." Robert nodded.

"Good... you must always update me on Angelica's mother's condition. If anything bad happens to her, it means you're the culprit!" Charlie added.

"Alright... I'll do whatever you want," Robert said, then mustered the courage to look into Charlie's cold gray eyes, which made him afraid. "Um... but... why are you doing this? Do you intend to marry Angelica?" he wondered.

"That's none of your business!" Charlie replied curtly. "You don't need to meddle in our affairs... your task is simply to be better, not greedy, and take care of her mother!"

"But..." Robert was a bit anxious, considering his habit of spending money on gambling and buying girls, but he didn't want to say that to Charlie.

"What?" Charlie asked.

Robert smiled sheepishly. "Um... but what if I run out of money? You know Angelica's mother is suffering from lung cancer and the treatment costs are very high..."

"I'll give you more, 100K dollars every month," Charlie said before Robert finished his sentence.

Robert's eyes immediately sparkled, imagining he wouldn't run out of money and could still have fun.

"Sir, you're so kind, you..."

"Don't flatter me with your false words!" Charlie exclaimed, standing up.

Robert fell silent, watching Charlie walk towards the house's door.

Roger glanced at Robert, sneering. "You're happy now... You must be imagining how many girls you can buy with that money. Charlie won't allow that to happen... his people will keep an eye on you," he said casually.

Robert remained silent, his smile fading, and he glanced at Roger with disdain. 'You're just trash! I'm not afraid of your threats!' he thought, then immediately stood up with his bag and walked towards the upper floor.

"You Greedy old fart!" Roger muttered, then got up and looked at the collection of drinks available on the shelf.

___

In her room, Angelica didn't want to let go of her mother's embrace, as if she didn't want to part from her.

"Mom... I can't be far from you, really... just come with me, you'll stay with Kate," she said with sadness.

"No, Sweetheart," Emma replied, her breath heavy.

"But why?"

"I don't want to burden you," Emma said, realizing her condition often weakened unpredictably, while Kate and Angelica had to work.

Angelica released her embrace, gazing at her mother with sadness.

"I'll stay here... I'll be fine," Emma said, her somewhat pale face smiling warmly.

"You can come with us, and it won't be a burden to anyone," Charlie said, making Angelica and Emma glance at him. He approached them, feeling reluctant to separate them. "I'd be happy if you could stay together," he added.

"No, I'll stay here," Emma replied anxiously.

"It's okay..." Charlie shrugged. "You can come with us, stay in my mansion, or rent an apartment... I'll take care of everything."

"No, dear, don't do that..." Emma shook her head. "You've already helped us a lot even though you don't know our family well..."

"That's not a problem at all..."

"No, I don't want to burden you and others... I'll stay here, but please let Angelica work at your place, it will be a comfortable place for her," Emma pleaded.

Angelica fell silent, disappointed with her mother's decision.

Charlie glanced at the still-hesitant Angelica. "If you really can't be far from your mother, then you can stay here. You don't need to repay me by working at my place..."

"No!" Emma exclaimed as she stood up and reached for Charlie's hand, looking up at his handsome face. "Please take her, here it's not the safe place for her anymore. I'm sure Darren will come back to harass her, or maybe some other man... her uncle will take advantage of her presence here... so it's better for her to leave!" She pleaded.

"Uh, that's true, but she can't be far from you... I can ask my assistant to always watch over you to keep you safe..."

"No, it's not necessary," Angelica said as she stood up, and Charlie didn't continue his sentence. "I'll go to San Diego if that's what's best... I'll go!" she asserted with confidence.

"But if you don't want to..."

"I want to!" Angelica reassured, looking at Charlie seriously. "Don't make us owe you even more. The one million dollars you gave us is enough... and let me work for you... that has already helped us so much!"

Charlie fell silent, remembering he had promised to give more money to Robert. It made him think he should meet him to keep his promise a secret so that Angelica wouldn't be angry with him. Besides, the promise was for Emma's sake.

"I'll get ready," Angelica said, approaching her wardrobe, and thinking of taking more clothes since she only bought a few last night.

"Son..."

Charlie turned to Emma, who was no longer holding his hand.

"I don't know who you are, but... I'm very grateful for all your help," Emma said with teary eyes. "It's like a miracle for us... We were so resigned before, like there was no way out of the suffering, but you suddenly appeared to uplift us... I believe God purposely brought you to this city to see us and knock on the door of your heart to help us... You're an intermediary from God to us," she continued.

"Um, yeah..." Charlie nodded with a slight smile. "I'm just an intermediary from God, you don't need to feel continually indebted. And I don't expect anything in return..."

Emma nodded, trying to believe in Charlie even though he was mysterious and strange, but this was better than Angelica ending up with cruel Darren.

After packing, Angelica quickly walked to the yard with her mother, while Roger and Charlie loaded their luggage into the car. Kate had just arrived after picking up her luggage from a nearby house.

"Mom..." Angelica hugged her mother tightly, still finding it hard to leave her.

"It's okay, don't worry, mommy will be fine, trust me..." Emma said, patting Angelica's back. "Now you can leave in a good way, and mommy is already safe here. So you don't have to worry anymore," she continued before letting go of Angelica's embrace.

Angelica cried, tears streaming down her smooth cheeks.

"Don't cry, you'll look ugly," Emma said with a chuckle.

"I love you, mom," Angelica replied.

"I love you more, sweetie... this isn't the end of everything. You'll contact Mommy often, okay?" Emma said with a warm smile, wiping Angelica's tears.

"Don't change your phone number, I'll call you when I get a new phone," Angelica replied, trying to hold back her tears. She glanced at Charlie, who was putting the luggage in the trunk. "Maybe I'll only be able to buy a phone when he gives me my first paycheck."

"Or he might just give you a phone for free..."

"No, I don't want to accept that... he's already helped us too much, it's even weird for me," Angelica said while looking back at her mother, grateful that Charlie had assisted them. 'If he only knew, Charlie might be a playboy who likes to play with girls, he even has 12 dogs and a lion in his mansion... that could make her very worried,' she thought with concern.

"Don't think too much about the help he gave you... The most important thing is that you're free from this bad situation now!" Emma emphasized.

Angelica just nodded, not wanting to voice her doubts. It could shatter her mother's current happiness.

"We're ready now," Charlie said, approaching Angelica.

"Okay..."

Angelica hugged her mother again for a moment, then looked at her uncle, whose smile only made her more disgusted.

"If you dare to hurt her, I won't hesitate to take you down!" She said firmly.

"Don't worry, I would never hurt my sister," Robert replied, hugging Emma from the side with a smile.

Angelica took a deep breath, feeling instantly suffocated every time she felt so angry at her uncle, causing her to quickly turn to Charlie, who was leading her towards the car.

'Now I'm leaving, I don't care what happens next, but at least this is better than continuing to be Darren's slave,' she thought, occasionally glancing at Charlie who was walking beside her, even embracing her waist from the side. 'He kissed me, and now he's hugging me... what if he wants to do more than that?'

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