Isabella walked towards the living room somewhat hurriedly, with Hunter following her, holding his two walking sticks. The woman immediately opened the front door and found a man and a pregnant woman dressed casually, both with natural black hair and distinctly Asian faces.
"Um... Hey," she greeted nervously, trying to remember who they were.
"Sorry if our arrival disturbs you, but why are you here?" the man asked, occasionally glancing at Hunter, who was now standing behind Isabella.
Isabella gave a thin smile. "Of course, because this is my house."
"Your house?"
"Yes..."
"But we've already bought it," the woman said, frowning. "We've paid it off, and even the house certificate has been transferred to my husband's name," she continued, looking at the man beside her, who nodded.
Isabella stood frozen, her heart racing as she remembered that the house certificate had gone missing, thinking about how her uncle could come and go freely.
"You all better come in," Hunter said with a serious expression.
With her heart pounding, Isabella walked back into the living room with Hunter and the couple. They quickly sat down, exchanging awkward glances.
"I'm Hunter, and this is my wife, Isabella," Hunter said, looking at the man with a flat expression.
"Oh, I'm Mark, and this is my wife, Melisa," the man replied with a slight smile. "We just moved here... We're actually from South Korea."
Isabella remained silent, occasionally swallowing nervously, constantly watching them with anxiety.
"I understand the problem," Hunter said. "I'm sorry this makes you uncomfortable, but... we really can't leave this house," he continued.
"But we've already bought it," Melisa said with a frown. "You must leave because we plan to move in soon, especially before our baby is born," she added, holding her pregnant belly.
Isabella crossed her arms and bit her lower lip, glancing at Melisa's belly.
"We ask for your understanding; you must vacate this house soon," Mark said, with a concerned look in his dark eyes.
"Alright," Isabella replied, nodding. "We will leave this house soon," she added, causing Hunter to turn to her.
"Honey, we are not leaving this house," Hunter said. "Didn't I tell you? No matter what your uncle has done, we will never let this house belong to anyone else!"
"But it's urgent now—they need to move in before their baby is born... Moving houses is tiring and takes time to adjust, so they need to start soon," Isabella snapped, looking back at Melisa and Mark, imagining them making this house their home, erasing her memories with her family.
Hunter leaned close to Isabella's ear. "I know you don't want this house to belong to anyone else... So, let me buy it."
Isabella remained silent.
"Please, let me take care of this," Hunter pleaded again, then focused on Mark. "Sir... I believe there's been a mistake, which is why we can't fulfill your request for us to leave the house. We never intended to sell it."
"But we've already bought and fully paid for it!" Melisa snapped, her sharp gaze fixed on Hunter.
"Darling, calm down," Mark said, glancing at Melisa.
"I will return the money you've paid... to the person who sold you this house, and even double it," Hunter said.
Isabella immediately turned to Hunter, her eyes wide, frowning.
"Double it?" She grabbed Hunter's arm. "Are you crazy?"
Hunter remained silent, focusing back on Mark.
"I'll have my people handle everything, even find you a new house that matches the funds I give you," he said with a calm look, glancing at a stunned Melisa.
"Are you serious about this?" Mark asked.
"Yes, of course. I'd rather buy back this house for double the price than let anyone else, including you, have it," Hunter replied calmly. "I hope you agree, and we can finalize everything with the notary, after which you can buy or start looking for a new house, especially since you said your wife is due soon," he continued.
Mark remained silent, biting his lower lip occasionally, then turned to Melisa, who held his arm.
"Let's just accept the offer. Getting double means we can buy an even better house," Melisa whispered.
Mark said nothing, his face showing anxiety as he looked at Hunter, his attention occasionally drawn to Hunter's walking sticks leaning against the sofa.
"Um... Honestly, your offer is great, but... How did this happen?" he asked, frowning and shaking his head. "Why was this house put up for auction if you didn't want to sell it? Even the auction had the house certificate, so we didn't hesitate to buy it... This confuses me."
Hunter exhaled sharply and leaned back on the sofa, his arm around Isabella.
"Because someone stole the certificate," he said.
"It was probably my uncle," Isabella added wearily, lowering her head. "Maybe he took the certificate when my sibling and I left the house. We should have taken it with us so this wouldn't have happened," she continued, full of regret, biting her lower lip and glancing at Hunter.
"It's okay." Hunter smiled and rubbed Isabella's shoulder.
"But in the end, you have to spend more money on me again..." Isabella couldn't hold back her tears. "I keep burdening you with my life's problems..."
"It's okay... You're my wife; your problems are my problems too. I'm responsible for helping you solve them," Hunter reassured her, while Mark's face grew more anxious.
"Sir... If the house was sold improperly, then... you don't need to buy it again, not even for double," Mark said worriedly. "I'll meet with the auction house to get our money back and the notary to revert the ownership to you," he continued.
"No, I'm sticking to my plan to buy the house from you because it's already yours," Hunter replied. "You'd only trouble yourself with meeting the auction house and the notary. It's not easy and will take a long time, especially with your wife's due date approaching. You'll be too busy," he said, glancing at Melisa.
"What he's saying is true," Melisa agreed, squeezing Mark's arm.
"No!" Mark shook his head. "I can't accept this. I don't want to profit from this mess!" he insisted, frowning at Melisa before turning back to Hunter.
"I'll meet with the auction house and the notary. My wife will stay with our relatives until this is resolved, and I can buy a new house with the refunded money," Mark said.
Hunter gave a thin smile.
"You won't get that money back... It's likely already given to my wife's uncle, and he's probably spent it. Even if he still has it, he won't return it because he's a cunning man. Your efforts will be in vain... so just agree to my plan. Let this be a benefit to you and your wife," Hunter said calmly.
"But..." Mark sighed deeply, his face full of worry. "Alright, I'll accept this, but please don't give me double. I don't want to take advantage of this."
"Do you think I'll run out of money?" Hunter asked.
Mark said nothing but slowly nodded.
"Don't worry... When I have someone I can trust, I have everything... I can control it all with my money... And... this isn't my house—it's my wife's house," Hunter explained with a smile, then took his phone from his pocket. He quickly called Collin and asked him to come and meet with Mark and Melisa.