Chapter 2
Upon hearing their mother's voice, Cesar came out of his room followed by Amelia who came out of her room very slowly because of her weakened state.
But somehow she managed to out and somehow tried to sit down on the wet floor but she was stopped by Cesar.
He first wiped the wet floor and then spread a plastic cover to block the chill.
Ella brought the ladle from the kitchen and sat down on the floor, she was startled when she saw a plastic cover that was spread on the floor.
She dazedly asked, " where did you get the plastic cover?"
Cesar responded to her, "I found it in my cupboard so I brought it with me. Now, we can sit on it comfortably."
Ella was delighted to see her son care about the family, she smiled appreciatively at him."Good to know that care about us. This was very nice of you."
"Stop embarrassing me, mum," Cesar said with his cheeks flushed.
Ella smiled and ruffled his hair before placing bowls and small plates in front of Cesar and Amelia and served them soup and some boiled eggs.
Once she was done serving them dinner, she asked her children to pray to God before having dinner.
Cesar and Amelia together with their mother joined their hands and started reciting the prayer that they were taught from a young age.
"Oh Lord Jesus bless this food to our body, Lord, let us hold you in our hearts and help us to do our part in kind words and loving deeds."
After the prayer, the Fitzgerald family started having dinner.
The soup was hot and Amelia couldn't take a sip of it, Ella saw her daughter struggling while drinking the soup, so she took the spoon from her daughter's hand and blew over it gently before feeding it to Amelia and asked, "Is the soup okay for you to drink?"
Amelia didn't say anything she simply nodded her head.
The plastic cover on the floor blocked the chill but it didn't block the rainwater that was leaking down from the dilapidated roof. Seeing that the water from the roof was almost falling into the soup, Ella sighed and looked at her son before gently saying, "Cesar would you please bring a bucket from the bathroom?"
Cesar stood up—— ruffled as he left his dinner and went to get a bucket but as soon as he placed the bucket down, the water started dripping from another loose wooden plank, annoyed he complained to his mother, "Mum, why don't you replace these broken windows with the new ones? We always have to face these situations every time. Even the roof is leaking when was the last time it was mended?"
Ella was silenced by her son's complaints because those complaints were practical but as a widow, she was incapable of doing much. Her education qualifications weren't good and she couldn't earn enough money to replace the old windows with the new ones and taking care of the leaking roof was just as difficult.
The condition of the house was very miserable and she knew that but currently, she was working in a paper manufacturing company after the death of her husband and her salary was yet to come and even if it came, she would have trouble managing the household affairs much less do a renovation.
So, at present she could only give an excuse, "Cesar you that mommy wants you to grow up grounded, don't you?"
Cesar knew her mother was giving excuses, he snorted and said, "Mum at least say something different, I have heard it so many times, if you keep on saying this, then I might as well become a tree that way I will always be grounded."
Realising that she couldn't fool her son anymore with the same thing that she used to say when he was young, Ella sighed. "I don't have much money, I am afraid that we can't even manage to get through this month much less take care of the leakage. We have to manage ourselves with what we have."
Cesar pursed his lips but then he snuggled to his mother and started to act spoiled. " Mother, at least the roof… please have it repaired, or else I am afraid that I will wake up in a swimming pool in the morning one day."
Ella knew that he was trying to butter her up, so she pinched his cheek. " All right, I will try to do something by next month." The rain will be stopping by next month and then she will be able to divert her son's attention with something else.
Cesar was sceptical and asked, "By next month?"
"Cesar try to understand tomorrow I will get my salary and from that, I have to purchase the groceries. The money that I will save will be used to buy medicine for Amelia, I don't have money at the moment but I will see if there are any part-time job in the convenience store, if there is I will try to save some extra money for the repairs," replied Ella, feeling a headache coming.
She needed to pay for Cesar's school fees and there was also Amelia's treatment, where will she get the money? She was not young anymore —— there was hardly any chance for the convenience store or any other place to hire her.
Cesar saw the tired expression on his mother's face and said, " Should I try to get a job, mom?"
At once Ella smacked him with the ladle. " What nonsense you are thinking about? You are still young, just focus on studying and nothing else. I am waiting for you to become a successful man."
Cesar who was always at the bottom of his class: "….."
Ignoring what his mother said he started sipping his soup. Just avoid what couldn't be answered.
Ella continued to feed her daughter after she was done shaking her son off but then someone unexpectedly started banging on the door constantly and ringing the doorbell of their house continuously at the same time.
Ella handed the spoon back to her daughter and stood up from the floor before crossing the room to see who was at the door.
The moment she opened the door, she was thunderstruck.
A man with a wild look in his eyes was standing right in front of her. Mr Richardson.
The boss of the Mexican mafia gang.
The one who gave a loan to her husband to buy their previous house was later taken away as a mortgage when she borrowed money to treat her husband.
But then her husband and the money both were gone and now it was up to her to pay the debt that her husband once owed.