Chapter Sixteen

Maximillian

Startled awake by a loud thud, reminiscent of someone forcefully attempting to breach a door, I struggled to sit up. Squinting at the wall clock, I groggily registered it was 2 am. As I rubbed my tired eyes, the entrance violently gave way, admitting five masked, armed intruders who pointed their guns at me, ordering me to kneel.

Two of them hurried to wake Edwina and her family, ushering them into the sitting room to join me on the floor. Helpless, I listened to Esther whimper and Evelyn cry, the realization of my inability to protect them weighing heavily on me.

"Where's the money?" One of them demanded.

Cyril's voice shook as he replied, "What... What are you talking about? I don't have any money."

"You better don't play games with us," Another warned. "We're not here to play with you."

Oddly, the voices of the two men sounded familiar, though I couldn't place where I'd heard them before.

"The loan you got from your cooperative society... Where's it hidden?" Inqu