Chapter 1

Kamara's POV

I stared at the mannequin, dazzled by my piece of art. I can feel it in my heart that I would go far and become a brand name soon. Hyping my works doesn't come in the form of gloating. It's a mere fact without any opposition.

“Damn!” My friend Chantelle exclaimed from behind. “you my friend are a genius. How do you do this?” 

“I don't know, Chan. I just love every bit of creating. Do you think this would fit into the designs I intend to submit for the fashion school?” 

“All of your designs are remarkable, girl. Whichever one you chose to submit would get you in.” 

Exhaling loudly, I slumped into the couch next to me. “I don't know if this would work out. I feel so anxious. Now that the day is coming closer, I have practically lost sleep.” 

My head ached at the mere thought of my hopes shattering. For some unknown reason, I keep getting a bad feeling that something might happen and end my career. All my life, I have dreamt of becoming a household name in the fashion world. But that requires learning from the best, and interning in a fashion school is the only way forward for me.  

A reference letter would have been a problem, but luck seemed to be on my side as my lecturer, Dr. Scott, offered to do so on my behalf. Everything seems perfect and looks too good to be true. In a month's time, my fate would be sealed. I just rounded up my final exams in college. Six months is all I need to intern and get certified from the New York fashion school and I would be out in the world winning. 

Chantelle pulled at my hand, “stop zoning out. You need to believe in yourself. You have worked hard, Kamara. Now is your time to shine. Let's go clubbing tonight. I really have to get some dick.” 

Snorting out a laugh, I rolled my eyes. “You are always so extra. How many dicks do you think you would get? Also, I don't think I want to step out of this house today. I would prefer we watch movies and eat junks.” 

“I hate you.” She pouted, folding her arms against her chest as she walked out of the room. 

Laughing at her silliness, I reached for my phone on the bed. As if on cue, a call from my sister, Ciara, came in. 

“What's up, C.” I hollered, twirling the tip of my hair with my finger.  

Ciara sniffed on the other end. “You need to come home now, Kamara.” 

“What's going on? Are you crying?” I inquired, furrowing her face in worry. 

“It's dad. He slumped.” 

“What!” 

“He is at the hospital. Please come home.” 

“I will be right there in no time. Just hang on.” I bellowed, ending the call as I searched through my closet for a decent cloth to wear. 

Chantelle rushed back into the room. “is everything okay?” 

“Nothing is okay. My dad is at the hospital.” 

“Oh, my God! We need to go now. I will grab the car keys while you dress up.” 

I had a grateful look on my face. “thank you so much, Chantelle.” 

Like a maniac, not caring that she might get fined, Chantelle drove through the busy roads of Atlanta to get me to the hospital. Ciara ran towards me the moment we left the reception. 

“Where is mum?” I asked. 

“She is with dad.” 

The both of us, alongside Chantelle, made our way to the room. I let out a loud breath of relief when I saw my father breathing calmly without tubes attached to him. I had thought of the worst scenario on the way to the hospital. 

“Mum.” I called out, hugging my mother. “Where are the rest?” I asked after my two other siblings. 

Mum exhaled slowly, “they are at home. I had to ask Mrs. Jones to help look after them.” 

“What's going on? What happened to him?” 

“We need to talk, baby.” She said, holding my gaze. 

“Okay.” I replied hesitantly as my heart thumped at what she intended to reveal to me. Mum hardly asks for a private talk unless there is something serious going on. “I will be right back, Chantelle.” 

“Thanks for coming, Chantelle.” Mum motioned at her. 

Chantelle smiled lightly, “it's okay, Shellie. He would be fine.” 

I opened the door to let mum out into the hallway, “is everything okay with dad? What did the doctor say?” 

“He will be fine. He only went into shock and fainted.” 

“Does dad have an underlying sickness that I do not know about?” 

“Listen, Kamara. Your dad and I have been holding back to sharing something's with you because we thought we could keep it under control. However, it's all out of hand now.” 

“Mum can you not talk in parables, please. What did you both do?” 

“The bakery fell short of money last year due to the fire that gutted half of the shop. Also, sales went down because a new pastry shop opened up opposite us with nice aesthetics. I didn't know when your father used all of his savings, including your siblings' college money, to keep the business afloat and restructure the shop and buy new modern equipment. However, the storehouse had been leaking, unknown to us. Rain drops got in and ruined all the flour bags. Causing us to incur more loss while we were still trying to gather enough money to pay off other debts.” 

My mouth was wide, agape. I am trying not to react to the realization of my sibling's dreams drowning. “When did all of this happen, and I wasn't aware?” 

“You were having the mock fashion show at the college and we both saw how much you had to do. It was just right for us as your parents to keep you from worrying unnecessarily. We are the adults.” 

“So why are you telling me now?” 

“Because we couldn't keep up with the payment and now everything we own is at stake.” She sniffed, trying to hold back the tears in her eyes. 

“How much is it? And which bank did he take the loan from? Probably we can ask for more time.” 

Letting out a long breath, she bit on her lower lip. “the bank didn't lend Andrew the money. In fact, I thought he had borrowed from the bank. The truth is he indulged in some gambling which an old friend introduced to him, assuring him he would win. In the process, he took money from the men at the casino with the hope of winning. Our mortgage on the bake shop was due, and he needed to get the college money back. Turns out he ran a deal with the mafia. And now they insist on taking the house if we don't pay back in a week time. Our mortgage is finally due, and it has been sealed.” 

A loud noise echoed in my ears as I blinked slowly. "M....mafia? How is that even possible? Dad doesn't involve himself with criminals. Why now?” 

“I don't know, baby. He must have been so desperate to save the one place he spent his entire youth working on. That bakery is dear to his heart. He just couldn't watch it go into ruins. And there was the future of your siblings. All of their college funds were gone. I was angry at first when he eventually told me the truth. But then I had to see it from his perspective. It would have worked out if sales went as expected.”

Grabbing a fistful of my hair, I groaned inwardly, unable to decipher the emotions running through me. 

“How much are we talking about?” I asked, hoping it wouldn't be an enormous amount. 

Mum inhaled sharply, staring right into my soul, “One hundred and fifty thousand dollars!”