Shattered Illusions: Love, Lies, and Redemption

After Lizetta had breakfast and just got into her car, her phone rang – it was Yolanda.

She saw the news from the neighborhood chat group and was worried sick, so she asked

for leave from the set and bolted.

Lizetta met her at the café, and they’d barely exchanged a few words when the landlord called, sounding really ticked off, demanding Yolanda get back ASAP.

Lizetta went with Yolanda back to the apartment, only to find their stuff chucked outside, all haphazard and messy. And to top it off, the landlord refused to refund over four

months‘ worth of rent.

“The place nearly turned into a haunted house, and I let you off easy not suing your butts! Renting to people like you was like bad karma! Thinking of getting your rent back? Dream

on!”

The landlord was this hefty woman, nearly 200 pounds, hands on hips and looking fierce.

“What do you mean ‘people like us‘?”

Yolanda was fuming. She got the landlord being mad, and she came back all sincere, ready to talk it out, anything to sort things out.

But the landlord was being nasty and throwing insults – who could stand that?

“All spooked up, up to no good, causing a ruckus chasing men, and you still got the nerve to ask me?!”

She gave Lizetta the once–over with a look of utter disdain, as if she was staring at something filthy.

It was one thing to talk smack about her, but saying things about Lizetta was off–limits Yolanda lost it and grabbed the chunky landlord, dragging her down the stairs.

“Are you fricking brain–dead or just lacking any sense of critical thinking? Blaming the victim – you’re so ‘enlightened‘, aren’t you? Come with me!”

Yolanda was strong, and the landlord stumbled helplessly, getting scared and collapsing on the stairs, wailing.

“Assault! Someone’s gonna murder me!”

Yolanda wanted to drag her to the neighborhood committee to settle this, but then the landlord suddenly played the victim. Yolanda snorted and rolled up her sleeves.

“Alright! Assault and murder, is it? Today you’re gonna witness some real fighting spirit!

Lizetta grabbed her, panic written all over her face, “Stop! You’re the eight–time boxing champ, unbeatable across the city! If you hit her, at the very least she’ll end up with

broken legs. Remember that thug you paralyzed for provoking you? Lucky for you, you were a minor then and avoided a record. Please, keep your cool!”

Yolanda turned around, completely baffled.

Was she really that badass?

But she caught on quick, grinning menacingly, “Let go! I’ve got to teach her a lesson today. If anything happens, they will have my back!”

The landlord was usually not easy to fool, but she had just seen some medals and trophies while packing up, which seemed like legit boxing stuff.

She swallowed hard, standing her ground.

“You can’t scare me! It’s my house, and I won’t rent if I don’t want to!”

= F S 5 ? P & 50 IS I

“Once a rental contract is signed, within the lease term, you have no right to evict someone without my clients‘ agreement.”

Just then, a familiar melodious voice echoed up the stairwell. Lizetta turned to see Hogan, clad in a gray suit, climbing the stairs.

He caught her surprised look, smiled slightly behind his glasses, and then addressed the landlord, “I’m their lawyer, Hogan White; here to deal with this situation.”

Hogan had that elite vibe, the kind of composed and meticulous aura shared by doctors and lawyers.

The landlord’s eyes flickered even more, and Yolanda, unsatisfied, yanked Hogan aside, raising her fist, “You’re early. Go downstairs. After I’ve knocked some sense into her, you can come up and sort it out.”

Both the landlord and Lizetta were speechless. Hogan paused too, and then spoke to the

landlord.

“If there’s been an incident, it means the house is unsafe, and breaking the lease is even less appropriate. If we go to court, you’ll be on the hook for damages and breach of contract fees. If you’re really not willing to refund the rent, we’ll have to take legal action.”ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .

The landlord’s defenses were down, and she shouted, “I’ll refund it!”

Hogan looked at Yolanda, who quickly passed over the payment code.

“Just refund the rent, forget the breach of contract fee,”

After all the drama, the place might be hard to rent out for a while. She had planned to renew the lease for another year, figuring the incident would be old news by then, and the landlord wouldn’t lose out. But she hadn’t counted on this attitude.

Once the landlord transferred the money and stood up to leave, Yolanda blocked her way with a foot against the wall.

“Apologizer”

The landlord caved in, quickly turned around and mumbled an apology to Lizetta.

Yolanda dropped her leg, and the landlord bolted upstairs, slamming the door like she was being chased by ghosts.

The hallway went quiet, and the three of them looked at each other and simultaneously burst into laughter.