You Looked Down on Me Once Now You Look Up (Patricia and Oliver) novel Chapter 804

Aiden’s warning hit hard, maybe because it was just so true.

Raymond was stuck. No job, no prospects, just scraping by on his parents’ pension. If things really blew up now, it would destroy his family. Patricia could see how close they were to the edge, so when the argument started winding down, she let her gaze drift away.

The air was sharp with winter, but classes were still in session, so students crowded the university district. People had stopped to watch the drama play out, some of them whispering and shooting looks at Cecilia. These days, parents worried their kids would drag them down, while kids worried their parents would suck them dry. Somewhere along the way, families had turned into battlegrounds.

Sometimes Patricia couldn’t help thinking how strange it was. The person everyone else had thrown away like garbage was the one thing she’d never get back, the one thing she’d always treasure.

She leaned her head on her hand and scrolled through her phone. Chelsea was complaining about her experiments again, saying they were even harder to deal with than men. Patricia was about to type a reply when—

The car door on the other side flew open.

She jerked in surprise. Before she could even process what was happening, a man with a lined face and gray hair dropped to his knees right there on the pavement.

Tears streamed down his face as he begged, “Mrs. Padilla, I’m Dylan from North County Energy. Please, I’m begging you, talk to Mr. Padilla for me. Don’t let him ruin me.”

Patricia’s chest tightened. She shifted away, trying to avoid his desperate gesture. “What are you doing?”

A moment later, Jackson and Aiden walked up carrying bags, only to stop short at the sight. For a second, they just stared.

Seriously? Was this for real? Kneeling on the sidewalk in broad daylight? The monarchy had been gone for ages, but people were still dropping to their knees.

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