“What?”

“You’re asking me?” Eric scowled.

“You’re hungry and didn’t even notice?”

Hadley flushed with embarrassment and snapped, “If you’ve got nothing useful to say, then just shut up!”

“Oh!” Eric grew flustered and muttered to himself, “I actually let her go hungry? I’m seriously useless.”

Without another word, he turned and walked off.

Hadley frowned and followed.

“Where are you going?”

“To figure something out!”

Figure what out? She didn’t understand. Was he really going to beg for food?

To her surprise, she guessed right—Eric headed straight to the railway police station.

“Officer.”

“You two again?”

In such a small town, the railway police had been dealing with them all night. He recognized them instantly. He assumed they’d come to ask for information about their stolen belongings.

“No updates yet.”

“No,” Eric replied, shaking his head with a sheepish smile.

“Actually, I wanted to ask if I could borrow a little money.”

“What?”

Both the officer and Hadley looked stunned.

“Officer.” Eric offered a pleading smile.

“All our belongings were stolen. We’re flat broke… I just need enough for a meal. Once the person picking me up arrives, I’ll pay you back.” He clasped his hands together, looking pitiful.

“Please, officer! I’ll write you a promissory note and sign it for proof.”

“Alright, alright!” The officer chuckled, shaking his head.

“No need for that. I’ll lend you some. Why didn’t you say something earlier? Neither of you has any cash?”

“All our money was in the bag. We didn’t expect to get robbed.”

The officer pulled out his wallet, took out a few bills, and handed them to Eric.

“Here, take this.” After a moment’s thought, he added a few coins and said, “For the bus. There’s nowhere to eat nearby. You’ll need to catch a ride into town.”

“Thank you. Really—thank you.”

Eric accepted the money gratefully, bowing repeatedly, then turned and waved the bills at Hadley. Hadley stared, momentarily stunned. She had never imagined someone like Eric—rich and refined—would do something so down-to-earth. He truly knew how to adapt. He must have gone through tough times growing up.

“Here!” Eric jogged over, waving the money like a child showing off a prize.

“I got it! Now I can buy you food!”

Hadley swallowed the lump in her throat and smiled.

“Alright… I want a lot.”

“No problem!” Like a proud nobleman, Eric declared, “Tell me what you want—and I’ll buy it all!”

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