Reborn at Eighteen The Billionaire's Second Chance novel Chapter 48

Chapter 48

Elara

The cold October air hit my face as I stepped onto Blackwood Estate’s

marble steps, wheeling my suitcase behind me. Behind me, Mamá

clutched her worn luggage with trembling hands, her eyes darting

back toward the massive oak doors like a drowning woman watching

the shore recede.

“Elara,” she whispered, her voice cracking. “Are we really-”

“Yes.” I didn’t turn around. Couldn’t. If I looked back at that Gothic

monstrosity of a house one more time, I might lose my nerve.

My phone buzzed in my pocket. The number on the screen read “Rosa

– Iron District Housing.”

I pressed the green button, expecting a businesslike confirmation.

Instead, a woman’s voice exploded through the speaker–thick

Dominican accent, genuine panic bleeding through every word:

“Elara?! Finally! I’ve been calling you for two days! Your old phone–it

just kept ringing! I thought something terrible happened to you. Are

you okay?”

1/8

Chapter 48

My throat closed up.

Two days ago, I’d been dodging Victoria’s hired thugs in an alley.

Before that-

This was the first time in weeks someone had asked if I was okay and

meant it.

Not “are you going to embarrass the family,” not “are you causing

trouble again.” Just… concern. Real, human concern.

“I’m sorry, Rosa.” I forced my voice steady, turning away from Mamá

so she wouldn’t see the tears threatening to spill. “Things have

been… complicated. But I need that room now. The one in the Iron

District. Is it still available? I need to bring my mother too.”

“Ay, of course it’s still there!” Rosa’s tone shifted instantly–warm, protective, the kind of voice that could wrap you in a blanket and

make you

feel safe. “I’ve been holding it for you, mija. Didn’t rent it to

anyone else.”

I froze. “You… you held it? But I didn’t pay a deposit.”

“Deposit?” She laughed–soft, knowing. “Elara, I can hear it in your voice. You’re a good kid who got into some trouble. You need a place that’s yours, right? Not someone else’s charity. Not somewhere you

2/8

Chapter 48

have to earn your keep.”

The tears came then, hot and humiliating. I pressed my palm against

my eyes, shoulders shaking.

“Hey, hey.” Rosa’s voice gentled. “No crying, okay? Save that for when

you’re safe. Now tell me–where are you? My son Carlos can pick you

1. up. You have a lot of luggage?”

“We’re near Blackwood Estate in-” I glanced at the wrought–iron

gates, the hedge maze, the fountain with its stone angels. Everything

here cost more than most people earned in a year. “But we can take a

cab. I don’t want to trouble-”

“No, no, no.” Rosa cut me off. “You save your money, girl. Carlos is

already in Manhattan making deliveries. He’ll be there in thirty

minutes. Just stay put.”

Before I could argue, she continued, her voice shifting to practical:

“Rent is $750 a month, utilities included. You’ll share the kitchen,

living room, and bathroom with two other tenants–art school

students, very quiet. And I made pasteles yesterday. You’ll love them.”

Seven hundred fifty dollars. I did the math in my head–two hundred thousand from the checks, minus rent, food, school supplies. If I was careful, I could make it stretch until college. Maybe longer.

3/8

Chapter 48

“Okay.” My voice came out steadier than I felt. “We’ll wait for Carlos.”

“Perfecto. See you soon.”

The line went dead.

I turned to find Mamá staring at me with wide, confused eyes. “You…

you already planned this? Before today?”

“Yes, Mamá.” I met her gaze evenly. “I knew we couldn’t stay at

Blackwood much longer. So I made arrangements.”

Her face crumpled–not with sadness, but with something worse.

Realization. That her daughter had been three steps ahead of her this

whole time, while she’d still been clutching at the fantasy of being

accepted by the Vanes.

“How long?” she whispered. “How long have you been planning to

leave?”

I thought of the first morning after I’d woken up from rebirth. The

moment I’d decided I wouldn’t make the same mistakes twice.

“Since the day I stopped loving Julian.”

4/8

Chapter 48

Twenty minutes later, a battered white delivery van pulled up to the

estate gates. The driver–a Latino man in his thirties wearing a

baseball cap and work clothes–leaned out the window with a grin

that crinkled the corners of his eyes.

“You Elara and Maria? I’m Carlos. Ma sent me to get you.” He hopped

out, already reaching for our suitcases. “Throw these in the back.

We’ll have you home in no time.”

Home.

The word hit me like a physical thing. I’d lived at Blackwood Estate

for years, but I’d never once thought of it as home.

Mama’s eyes filled with tears again as Carlos effortlessly lifted her

heavy suitcase. At Blackwood, the staff had watched her struggle with

luggage, never offering to help. She was the cleaning woman. Below

them.

“Thank you,” I managed.

Carlos’s smile widened. “No problem. Ma says you’re gonna be

studying at St. Valerius? That’s a fancy school. You must be wicked

smart.”

I climbed into the van’s passenger seat. “I just… got lucky.”

5/8

Chapter 48

Carlos glanced at me in the rearview mirror as he pulled away from

Blackwood’s gates. Something flickered in his expression-

understanding, maybe. Like he’d heard that kind of self–deprecation

before and knew what it really meant.

“Iron District’s a good place,” he said instead. “Looks rough around

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify