A folded piece of paper dropped onto the floor.
Isabella saw it immediately. Her entire face drained of color. She quickly pulled away from me, jumped out of bed, and rushed to grab the paper. She tried to hide it behind her back, but her reaction was so sudden and obvious that I couldn’t ignore it.
“Isabella… what is that?” I asked.
“It’s nothing,” she said quickly. “Just an old document.”
But her voice trembled.
I reached for the paper. She resisted for a moment, clutching it tightly, but she didn’t have the strength to keep it from me. Eventually she let go.
When I unfolded it and read the words, my body went cold.
It was a promissory note for four million pesos.
And the debtor listed on the document was my own wife.
I looked up at her, stunned.
“Isabella… why do you owe four million pesos?”
Tears filled her eyes instantly. She began explaining in a shaky voice that a friend had convinced her to invest in a business opportunity. According to that friend, it was supposed to be a profitable venture importing beauty products from the United States. But the friend suddenly disappeared, taking the money and leaving behind a trail of debts.
It had all happened just a few days earlier.