Chapter 84 The Phone Trap
The rooftop of an abandoned building.
Emma was tied to a rickety chair, a scarf stuffed in her mouth.
A sharp pain shot through her shoulder.
She slumped against the back of the chair, her head buzzing.
"Just get the money as planned. Don’t mess with her," Joe Evans said.
"I’ve never met a girl like this before!" Stanley Rogers, a slightly older man, said.
"We shouldn’t do this. The boss only said to disable one of her hands," another young man, Paula Ward said.
"The boss didn’t tell us not to touch her..."
No!
I can’t lose my hand!
Or my career would be ruined!
Emma struggled to untie the ropes behind her back.
Stanley walked over, his feet shuffling in dirty, worn-out sneakers.
Emma instinctively tried to pull back, but she couldn’t move.
"Ugh!"
The scarf stuffed in her mouth was yanked out, leaving her lips burning.
She began to cough.
Before she could react, a rough hand clamped down on her chin, forcing her to look up.
"It hurts!" she managed to squeeze out.
Tears welled in her eyes and trickled down her cheeks.
"That's exactly how it should hurt." Stanley tilted his head, released her chin, and took two steps back.
"Take off her jacket," he instructed.
"Buddy, are we really going to do this?" Paula looked at Emma, hesitating.
"Cut the crap!" Stanley glared at him.
Trembling, Paula walked toward Emma.
"Have you thought this through?" Emma tried to persuade him. "Why doesn’t he do it himself? He just wants to pin the blame on you!"
"Shut the hell up, you bitch!"
Before she could finish, Stanley shoved Paula aside and slapped Emma across the face.
"Ugh!"
A thick, metallic taste of blood instantly filled her throat.
The other two teenagers were petrified.
Stanley approached.
"And you call yourselves thugs? Useless!"
No sooner had he finished speaking than her jacket was yanked up her arms.
With her hands tied behind the chair’s back, the jacket got caught around her waist.
The man pulled a knife from his back pocket.
Emma was petrified, and tears streamed down her face.
"I'll give you anything. Just don't use the knife. Please," she pleaded, her voice trembling.
Stanley grinned, placed one foot on her leg, and leaned forward.
"I'll give you whatever you want. Please don't hurt me." She kept her eyes tightly shut.
He snorted derisively.
One hand grabbed her high collar, while the other began to cut it open with the knife.
"Don't you dare move," he warned. "It wouldn't be good if I cut your face."
The icy air bit into her exposed skin slowly.
Emma opened her eyes and looked at the three people standing before her.
As her skin was exposed to the air, her face flushed crimson with humiliation.
Emma cried even harder.
"Hurry up and take a picture…" Stanley stammered as he pulled his phone out of his pocket.
He then snapped a series of haphazard shots of Emma's face.
Emma kept her eyes tightly shut, avoiding looking at the camera lens.
Then he made a phone call.
"We've got her, and we've taken the photos. As agreed, transfer the five-thousand-dollar deposit first, and I'll send you the photos right away."
"Don't worry! You'll get your money! I want to hear her voice first!"
As Stanley approached, a deeper wave of fear washed over her.
"Hey, say something." He reached out and slapped Emma's face.
"Don't let me find out who you are! Otherwise…" Emma shouted, clenching her teeth.
Before she could finish, Stanley grabbed her chin and warned in a low voice, "You're talking too much."
He then said into the phone, "Did you hear that? Send the money!"
The moment the call ended, a squad of police officers stormed in.
"Police! Don't move!"
Emma looked around, finding a man with a grim expression behind them.
David!
She burst into tears.
The three young men were stunned.
They immediately raised their hands and crouched down in panic.
David rushed over to her, quickly took off his coat, and wrapped it tightly around her exposed skin.
"You're finally here… I thought you didn't get the call…" she cried.
He pulled her into a tight embrace and gently rested her head on his shoulder. "It's okay, it's okay. Don't cry. Everything's fine now."
The officers quickly asked about the situation at the scene, and everyone answered truthfully.
Just as the police were preparing to take her away, Emma suddenly called out to the chief.
"I have an idea that might help you pinpoint the mastermind behind this."
The lead detective turned his gaze toward David.
David nodded.
Emma turned her head slightly from David's embrace, her gaze fixed coldly on Stanley. "Call them now and tell them you want more money."
Stanley looked up at the detective.
An officer nudged him with his foot.
Startled, Stanley quickly pulled out his phone.
Emma instructed an officer nearby to start recording and signaled the forensic tech to trace the call.
"I've already transferred the money to you. When are you sending the photos?" The voice on the other line was hoarse and urgent.
Stanley lowered his voice, "I want a higher price. Otherwise, I won't just cripple her hands—I'll kill her today."
"Kill her? Hmph! I'd love nothing more! You want a higher price? Dream on!"
The moment Emma heard that voice, she recognized it was Chloe!
Emma typed on her phone screen, her fingertips trembling.
She turned the phone toward Stanley.
Stanley looked at the words on the screen and swallowed nervously.
"No raise? Fine! I'll send the photos to Ben right now!"
There was silence on the other line.
"Bastard! Whose side are you on, anyway? How dare you play me like this!"
"One hundred thousand dollars. You have two minutes!" Stanley shouted before hanging up.
"Can we wrap this up now?" an officer asked quietly.
"Let's wait a little longer," Emma said softly.
Less than two minutes later, Stanley's phone received a $100,000 transfer.
"Block her number now, then send Ben the photo you just took," Emma said calmly as she dialed Ben's number.
"Tell him to transfer $100,000 to the designated children's charity fund, or you'll kill me," she instructed.
The others were momentarily confused.
Stanley picked up his phone.