The action froze in mid-air as a bitter smile eventually surfaced on his face, âYou donât get it. Itâs precisely because I love them that I canât get close.â
âAre you worried about Domingo and his cronies giving you trouble? They canât just run rampant and wipe everyone out with laws in the world.
Besides, you donât even live there anymore, and you donât even own your own house. Why on earth are they still dogging you relentlessly?â
Ablettâs complexion turned sour, âItâs not that I donât want to pursue this matter, but the difference between us is just too vast. Maybe out of all the people involved, Iâm the only one stubborn enough to cause a stir, so I make them mad.
Heck, as long as Iâm alive, Iâll never let them off the hook, that unscrupulous developer! Iâll always remember who made me homeless, and who prevented me to see my own children!â
âActually, I came today to ask if you had any more specific details back then. Iâve found Lout about Domingo and the group behind him, but I couldnât collect more details.â
Regina frowned slightly, equally at a loss in the face of such a dilemma. She had tried to investigate the group in many ways, but it was sealed tight, without a single crack to exploit.
âWhen they drove you out, did they slip up at all? They had to compensate you somehow, right? Even if the contract was grossly unfair, was there any evidence left behind?â
Ablett bowed his head in recollection, while Regina watched him intently, desperate to hear a useful clue from his lips.
âI felt the contract was so unfair when I first saw it so I didnât sign it and didnât even dea with them.
And then, more and more residents began to move out, and I started to sense something was offâ¦
But by the time I wanted to find that contract again, it was nowhere to be found.â
Ablett suddenly clutched his head in agony, âItâs all my fault for not having a lick of legal sense. I shouldâve taken photos to keep as evidence. Even some neighbors had discussed this with me, and we were all baffled. But in the end, they had no choice but to leave. I just know they mustâve threatened the residents through illegal means!
Yes, thatâs it! My neighbor didnât breathe a word of it until just before they left, warning me to look out for myself and not to confront them!â
The more Ablett thought about it, the more he was convinced that they had all been coerced into leaving, and that some might have even been harmed.
What about you? Itâs not possible that your family was the only exception, right?â
The mention of his family caused Ablett to slump again, his prior fervor replaced by a deep despondency.
âHeh, I donât know what my wife heard from others, but as all our neighbors were leaving, she refused to stand by my side. I canât blame her; if we stayed any longer, we might have ended up with nothing.
But Iâm so stubborn, and weâve been fighting about it all the time.
I knew she was scared, but I failed to comfort her as a husband should. It even got to the point of divorce. I regret so much! I just canât understand it. I spent all my savings on that house, so why was I forced out so easily?â