Leon did not have a car which he could follow Clinton with, so he opted for a taxi to trail him. Clinton drove down to the suburbs before he parked just beside a modest duplex. He didn't get out of the car for another few minutes. "This is going to cost you more, you know that, amigo?" The driver told Leon impatiently. Leon looked at his wallet and discovered he barely had enough change to cover the ride as it was, he decided to pay the cab driver off. As the car drove off, he got down and quickly hid behind a sycamore tree just outside the house. Shortly after, a thin and tall man came to the car and got inside. From where he hid, Leon could not hear anything that both men were saying. He could only hear the rumble of the car engine as it sat by the sidewalk. It wasn't long before the tall man left the vehicle, a small smile on his face, and walked into the duplex with a small brown envelope, then Clinton sped off. Leon knew he had to follow the man if he wanted clues, he di
Daniel looked at his son who was still at the doorway, looking interested in the conversation. "This is adults talk, get in the house," he told the boy and he reluctantly walked inside with the grandmother. Now, Leon was all alone with Daniel and he could talk. "How do you know about Clinton and the George company?" Daniel asked hastily. He looked at the house and told them to walk away from the earshot of his family whom he was sure was listening up from the window. "Why are you here?" Daniel asked him, his voice very low. He didn't want to agitate his family, especially after the argument he'd just had with his wife. "I saw you and Clinton together and I saw the manilla envelope in your hand," Daniel said, nodding at the house, "And your wife is right, you are putting your family in danger." "That's none of your business and neither is my relationship with Clinton," he said, baring his teeth. "Do you know that Clinton is not only trying to ruin Fiona but he might mak
The sun hung low in the sky, and the weather was a lot chill than expected, especially after the blistering heat of the previous day. Leon was already at the Pinch Cafe a full hour before Daniel was to arrive. He was still there when the clock struck noon and he heard the doorbell chime at the entrance of the cafe. Leon looked up and saw Daniel, but he wasn't alone, he was with his wife and the teen from the other day. Leon got up from his chair, frowning at him as he got to the table. "I didn't ask you to bring anyone along," he whispered just so Daniel could hear him. But even Elsa did because she shoved Daniel aside and looked at Leon in the eye. "I'm not going to sit back and let you pull a fast one on my husband, if you are what he says, then we have to be sure," she said. Daniel shrugged, he'd tried to dissuade his wife but Elsa wasn't a woman that bent easily. She'd made up her mind from the moment he'd mentioned that Leon was a healer, she'd decided she would be there to
The ring almost glowed on his fingers as the family all knelt down to thank him, praising him and offering him to stay with them for as long as he wanted. Leon rose from the sofa and shook his head, "No, I have a friend I need to help," he replied. As much as the offer of a place to sleep sounded inviting, he didn't want to become anyone's servant, he wanted to be a master and he could only do that on his own, with his own wealth. "What can we do, great one?" Elsa asked and Leon sighed at the title. Clearly he would have to get used to people calling him such names. "Just keep to our deal, that's all," Leon said, looking at Daniel. Daniel gasped, "Of course, of course, great one, I'll do that right away," he said and hurried out of the room. Shortly after, he returned with a small book and a folder. He laid it out on the desk and flipped through it gingerly. Elsa who didn't even know what he was looking for was right beside him, helping to flip too. The old woman came t
The rays of the sun woke Leon up and as he got out of the car, he was aching all over from sleeping wrong all through the night. Looking at his wristwatch, he saw that it was still early in the morning. The security guard was patrolling the parking lot and thankfully didn't see him coming out of the car. He stretched and quickly went into the hospital, he had to make sure everything was settled. In the lobby, he could already see the doctor and Clinton right beside him. "I heard you came looking for me last night, kept wondering what fancy excuse you've come up with," the doctor said and Clinton smiled. Clinton was very sure that Leon was there to beg for more time or even worse, revoke the vow he made to pay the loan. "It seems you haven't been able to get a job, huh? I don't think you should keep looking," Clinton said with a wicked smile. "I know you told the clinic to not hire me," he said and Clinton laughed at him heartily, "You don't have any evidence to back that s
Leon was the first to hurry to her. The little girl lay on the floor helplessly, her eyes rolling into the back of her head. "What's wrong with her?" He asked and Fiona shook her head. "Call the doctor, immediately," he instructed the nurse to rush off. Leon laid his hands on Mia, summoning the power of the ring to assess her body. He could see that she needed a blood transfusion because there was an antibody in her bloodstream. The doctor rushed out and when he saw Mia on the floor, unconscious, he was shocked and afraid. "I just performed the surgery and it was successful," he said, wondering what was wrong with the little girl. Leon could sense the urgency of the situation and he could see she might not be able to withstand the power of the ring if she didn't get a blood transfusion first. "She needs a blood transfusion," Leon said but the doctor had already instructed the nurses to take Mia to the operation room for another operation. "The operation was successful, tha
Leon held a card that just might solve all his problems, but he still held himself back from calling Fiona. He could only imagine what life would be like if he agreed to work for her. But Leon wanted more from life, he wanted more from the ring and he had to build himself to become worthy of being the greatest healer in the city and beyond. Sleeping in the car another night wasn't going to be a cool idea, so Leon decided to find a small place to rent with the spare change he had. It wasn't much, he doubted anyone would attend to him with such a small amount - not even the cheapest motels in town. This was what made him think of his former building. Where he'd lived with his ex-wife before their divorce. Arriving at the small apartment complex, he noticed that not much had changed while he was away. The same faces walked past him and some even said, "Hello, Leon." He passed by the third apartment where he'd shared with his wife, Annabella but he resisted the urge to knock on
A place to rest his head was all he wanted but he might have gotten much more than he bargained for. The room given to him by Tom was a small studio apartment. It was old and there was old furniture and fittings, unlike the other homes in the apartment. It was clear that Tom had given him the worst space even when he'd end up paying the most. But because Leon didn't have all the money at once, he had no choice but to take what was handed to him. Rats, raccoons, and other rodents ran across the room freely, nibbling on his toes and running through the hole in the window once he turned on his flashlight to look for it. The room where he slept had a few flickering bulbs, a small armchair, and a mat on the floor which he was grateful for. He couldn't afford a mattress and anything would be better than sleeping all cramped up in the backseat of the car - again. At first light the next day, Leon was the first person to get outside. He didn't have any reason to stay inside anymore - no