Chapter 219
Chapter 219
Gwendolyn fished out her ID card from her purse. “I have my ID with me, and I've previously signed a contract with you before. They should be proof that I'm the child's mother, so please let me see her.”
The man eyed her, then the ID card in her hand, only proceeding to open the door once he ascertained that she was the same person on the card.
The thick, acrid cigarette smoke hovering in the air caused her to erupt in a coughing fit, and a few men were drinking and swinging fists at each other.
“Samuel, the indebted woman is here.”
A man seated at the head of the table with a glass of alcohol glanced over.
Before Gwendolyn came upstairs, she had deliberately ruined her makeup to appear less desirable.
Smudges of mascara rimmed her eyes like a panda, and she smeared bright red lipstick sloppily across her lips, giving her the appearance of an insane grin.
He quickly averted his gaze, clearly dismissing her without a second thought.
“Take your daughter and leave after paying your debt,” he said coldly. A scar tugged his face as he spoke, making others feel slightly uncomfortable at the sight of that.
Gwendolyn slid the card to him. “The money's all there. You can swipe it, or I can transfer it to you.”
She didn't want to use this card at first, knowing the five hundred thousand inside was from her grandpa.
She didn't want to use it; she couldn't.
Today was the exception. Juliette was in their hands, and Gwendolyn needed to save her.
Pride and honor be damned. It wouldn't matter anyway if she lost Juliette.
Samuel signaled for his subordinate to swipe the card while she stood in place guardedly. It was her first time observing the men's vulgar conversation and swearing while drinking.
Some affluent individuals were handsome and suave like Patrick, as well as men from the seedy underworld—odorous, filthy, vicious men with foul tempers.
Her grip tightened convulsively around her bag, and she silently thanked her lucky stars that she had streaked her makeup beforehand.
Otherwise, those men would have devoured her alive. Leaving an impression on them could mean certain death for her.
Eugene and a burly man were among the men sitting at the bar table drinking. They were red-faced drunk from guzzling alcohol while gorging on a plate of meat. Their voices overlapped each other until they were a muddle of noise.
Gwendolyn cast a sidelong glance at the room where the subordinate had disappeared, puzzled as to why it took so long.
She wanted to pay up and leave as soon as possible with Juliette. It was not a good idea to stay in the company of a bunch of drunken men.
Her eyes darting to the door betrayed her growing anxiety.
Suddenly, a woman in a skin-tight red dress sauntered out. “The money is insufficient, Samuel!”
He locked his lethal gaze on Gwendolyn. “Are you toying with us, Ms. Ashton, by attempting to pay the ransom with insufficient money?”
Gwendolyn hastily clarified, “There should be five hundred thousand inside, which is the principal amount. I'll pay the interest tomorrow, okay?”
The events were too precipitated tonight, and she didn't have time to look for Lucy. Hence, she only had five hundred thousand on hand and was hoping they would accommodate her.
They didn't have to worry she would shirk payment since she had paid the principal amount.
Samuel barked a laugh. “Ms. Ashton, what makes you think we'd make an exception for you?”
The woman beside him slung an arm around his neck and snickered.
“Let me do the math for you, Ms. Ashton. You borrowed five hundred thousand and failed to pay it back within a month. As a result, you owe five hundred fifty thousand. Now you have deferred payment another month, and your debt has snowballed to another hundred thousand. Do you understand the concept of compound interest? Yours has accumulated to a total of two million.” This belongs to NôvelDrama.Org.
Gwendolyn's eyes widened comically. “Two million?”
“That's correct. More accurately, it's two million two hundred thirty thousand today. Tomorrow's figure will be different.”
“This is daylight robbery! How could you tally like that?” Gwendolyn fumed.