Chapter 24
David’s face was right in her face. Zina frowned, grabbing his wrist just before he could touch her. She felt his disgusting and sticky skin, and instinctively wanted to jerk away, but bit back the urge.
Zina locked eyes with one of the reporters, raising her voice, “You lot are buying into this made–up nonsense that he spouted? If I point out a birthmark on you, does that suddenly make you related to me?”
The reporter snapped, “What kind of nonsense are you talking?”
Zina shot back, “Just now, when this man was dragging my name through the mud, you were having a grand time watching, weren’t you? Turns out it stings when you get a taste of your own medicine?”
Not giving the reporter a chance to argue, Zina added, “I have proof I don’t know this man. I’ve already called the police. I’m waiting right here for them to show up.”
Hearing this, the security guard who’d been about to hustle Zina away with David to hush things up froze in his tracks, suddenly uncertain.
“Could have just said you called the police.” someone muttered from the crowd.
David struggled violently, shocked to find he couldn’t break free an inch. Panic flashed across his face as he whipped his head around, staring at Zina whose slender frame seemed no match for her strength.
“What are you trying to pull?” David snarled, “I’ll have you know, your parents took my money. Even if the police come, that still makes you my wife.”
The security guard understood what happened instantly. “This is human trafficking.”
The crowd, already buzzing with curiosity, erupted.
“Get him!”
“Thank heavens that girl had the guts to stand her ground! Can you imagine what could have happened if she’d been dragged off?”
“Unbelievable! Traffickers brazen enough to snatch people in broad daylight now?”
The police rolled up through the murmuring crowd. “Who made the call?”
Zina breathed a quiet sigh of relief inside.
“Officer, these people are trying to traffic me.” Zina cried out, her voice trembling, “I don’t know them at all. This man here is claiming I’m his wife, trying to drag me away. How on earth could a young girl like me suddenly be someone’s wife?”
While she was speaking, Zina lifted her face just so, making sure her most vulnerable angle showed, hoping to look every bit the terrified victim.
Sure enough, the officer in charge snapped to attention, his expression hardening as his eyes scanned the crowd.
David’s crew, who’d been all swagger and bluster just moments before, instantly stashed whatever they’d been waving around–ropes and other things. They started backpedaling wildly, hands up in frantic denial.
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Chapter 24
“Officer, we’re totally in the dark here. David just asked us to come pick up his wife. We had no clue it was like this.”
“David, haven’t we always treated you alright? How could you screw us over like this?”
“I gotta run. Got places to be.”
Unfazed by the disingenuous display, the officer simply cut through it with a swift gesture to the team behind him. “Take them all in for questioning.”
Amid the chaos of curses and shouts, David was the last one shoved into the squad car. As the crowd drifted apart, the world finally fell quiet.
The head of security met Zina’s eyes with deep regret, offering an awkward apology. “Miss, we’re truly sorry. We had no idea how bad things were until now.”
“What does it even mean to be security? Have you all forgotten your basic duty?” Zina shot back, “Consider this a formal complaint filed.”
Zina left the cowering and silenced guards behind and, with a nod to the officer, slid into the back of the squad car.
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I
