Chapter 2 - The Shadow at the Glass
The sharp voice echoed off the linoleum floors, freezing Leo in his tracks. He turned around slowly, his chest tightening as he saw their landlord, Mr. Henderson, storming through the sliding glass doors. Henderson’s face was twisted in a familiar, ugly sneer, his cheap polyester jacket unzipped to reveal a stained shirt stretched tightly over a protruding belly. He pointed a thick, nicotine-stained finger straight at them, his eyes darting suspiciously toward Nurse Sarah behind the reception desk.
"You kids think you can just run off and cause trouble?" Henderson barked, closing the distance between them with surprising speed. "Your mother owes two months of back rent, and you’re out here begging strangers for handouts? Get back to the apartment right now before I call the authorities and have you all thrown out on the street!"
Maya whimpered, hiding half of her face behind Leo’s blue hoodie. "We were just trying to find food, Mr. Henderson. My stomach hurts so bad."
"Shut your trap, girl," Henderson snapped, grabbing Leo roughly by his upper arm and yanking him backward. "Your mother is useless, and you're just as bad. You think crying at a hospital counter is going to pay the bills? Nobody cares about trash like you!"
Nurse Sarah slammed her palm down on the reception desk, the sharp slap echoing like a gunshot. "Take your hands off that boy right now, sir, or I’ll have security escort you off the premises immediately. These children are under my observation."
Henderson sneered, loosening his grip just an inch but refusing to let go entirely. "You stay out of this, nurse. I have a legal right to manage my property, and these kids belong in my building, not begging in a public hallway."
"We don't belong to you!" Leo shouted, tears finally spilling over his eyelashes as he twisted violently in Henderson’s grip, wrenching his arm free. "You locked our door! You took Mom’s wedding ring off the kitchen table when she was sleeping!"
The moment the words left Leo’s mouth, the color drained completely from Henderson’s face. His eyes darted nervously toward Sarah, who was now leaning over the desk with a razor-sharp, calculating expression.
"Is that true, sir?" Sarah asked, her voice dropping an octave into pure ice. "Did you steal from a tenant who is currently incapacitated?"
"He's lying! The brat is making it all up!" Henderson stammered, his face turning a furious shade of purple as he took a nervous step back toward the exit.
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"Prove it," a cold voice whispered right behind Henderson’s ear.
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