Chapter 5 Young Miss! We Are Sorry That We Came Late

• Chapter - 05
• "What do you mean?" Stacy frowned when she heard the officer.
• "What I said," the officer picked up the money Stacy slammed on the table and leaned back on her chair, counting it, "She is going to stay here until I feel otherwise."
• "You can't do it," Stacy continued to fight for her friend, "I have arranged for her bail. If she does not get out, how is she going to settle it with Amanda and her family?" Stacy tried to reason it with the officer.
• "I don't know," the officer did not care, "Or maybe, this is Miss Amanda's way of settling it with you."
• "Are you saying Amanda asked you to keep her locked up?" Stacy got suspicious and asked.
• "I am not saying nothin'," the police officer chuckled.
• "You are wasting your time... Get going," The officer waved his hands, "The courts will open on Monday. Your pretty friend has to be in here till then."
• "And don't worry, we will take good care of her." The officer smiled maliciously.
• "Are you sure?" But instead of giving up, this time, it was Stacy who suddenly smiled, looking at the officer, making the officer a bit uncomfortable.
• "What? You want to beg me now?" The officer, a bit doubtful of Stacy's intentions, said, "Well, you can try..."
• "Do you know what this is?" Stacy pulled out the pen from her shirt pocket and showed it to the officer, "I am sure you know."
• "This..." The officer looked at the pen, and the money slipped out of his hands, "What do you think you are doing?"
• "Nothing... Just think of it as a bargaining chip," Stacy smirked as she waved the pen in front of the officer, "You wouldn't want it to..."
• "Fine... Fine..." The officer hurriedly shushed Stacy as he tried to reach out for the pen, "Give it to me and take her."
• "There is no use," Stacy shook her head, "Even if you take the pen, the video is already stored somewhere else. So better let me keep it. It costs a bit you know."
• "And since you have already taken the money," Stacy said as she pushed her phone forward to take a close-up of the money on the table, "I will take my friend with me."
• And without wasting any more seconds inside the police station, Stacy pulled Thea with her out of there.
• ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
• "Are you alright?" As soon as they were far enough from the police station, Stacy stopped and asked Thea.
• Thea nodded, "I am sorry. Because of me, you lost all your savings," Teary-eyed, Thea apologised to Stacy.
• "Young... Ahem... have you gone insane?" Stacy rebuked Thea, "Do you think nothing of our friendship?"
• "But that money was for your college," Thea said. She was more disappointed in herself. She knew very well just how much that money was important for Stacy.
• But now, because of her one foolish mistake, Thea ruined it all. And not just for herself, but for her friend as well. And this pained her even more.
• "Do you think I can stay silent knowing the kind of mess you are in? Is this all you thought about our friendship?" Stacy looked disappointed hearing Thea, "I thought you would have done the same if I was in your place. But maybe I thought too highly of our friendship."
• "That's not what I meant," Thea tried to explain, "I just felt that I ruined everything for you."
• "You ruined nothing. Our friendship is more precious to me than getting admitted to some college," Stacy smiled as she put her arm around Thea, "And to be honest I am too dumb to actually think about going to some college, don’t you think so as well?"
• "Stacy..."
• "So put this all behind yourself," Stacy patted Thea's shoulder, "I am sure something great will come your way."
• "Thank you, Stacy,"
• "Come, let me accompany you home," Stacy suggested.
• "It's alright. I will be alright on my own,"
• "But..."
• "I want to be alone for some time," Thea said and, smiling at Stacy, walked away before Stacy could try and persuade her again.
• ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
• 'Where can I get this much money?'
• 'I can't even pay back the manager, let alone that guy in the black suit.'
• Alone, Thea wandered through the dimly lit street towards her home, thinking about what she could do. Thea knew she was in a hopeless situation, and it was hard for her to crawl out of it. Even fleeing the country looked like an option, but what would Thea do after that? She, along with her parents won't even be able to feed themselves in some foreign land.
• 'Should I just confess?' Thea thought, but the charges against her scared the shit out of her. Attempted murder? Rape? Wouldn't she end up spending her twenties and thirties, or maybe even her forties, rotting in jail for something she did not even commit?
• "Huh... God, I would appreciate your help any moment," Thea sighed as she looked up and asked for help from the almighty. And just as she did, her phone rang.
• "Hello!"
• "Hello!"
• Thea answered the phone, but there was no answer from the other side.
• "Now even the phone is not working," Thea was even more annoyed. But at the same time, Thea saw a car coming full speed towards her.
• The lights were so bright that she could not see in front. Covering her eyes, Thea tried to move out of the way but tripped and fell onto the ground. But luckily, the car also made a turn in the opposite direction.
• "Auuhh..." Thea groaned as she turned to look at the car. The car had collided with the street light, and smoke was coming out of it. Thea wanted to help, but now that she saw it clearly, there was not just one car. Apart from the one car that collided, almost half a dozen cars stopped one after the other.
• 'What is going on? Are they shooting a movie? Gang?' Right now, the last thing Thea wanted was to mess something up again.
• "Hurry up... Check if the girl is okay,"
• "Look at those in the car as well."
• "We are already late. The young miss must be waiting. I don't want any more delay,"
• While Thea pretended to faint, she heard someone give a bunch of orders.
• 'Young miss? Which young miss I messed up with again?' Thea cursed herself under her breath.
• "Kid, are you alright?" Someone approached her and turned Thea up.
• Thea suddenly felt a bright beam of light on her face when she heard the guy holding her.
• "Huh... Captain, it's her. It's the..." the guy said.
• But before the man could complete herself, Thea suddenly got up and pushed the man away. Then without looking back, Thea made a run for her life.
• 'They are definitely Amanda's people,' Thea guessed.
• 'Why won't they just leave her alone?'
• 'Are they here to kidnap her? Or get rid of her?'
• The more Thea thought, the faster she ran for her life. There were already very few people on the street. If she were to get kidnapped here, no one would even know. She had to reach her house first. Only her parents can save her now.
• But before long, Thea was panting for air. She was tired. She hadn't eaten anything since lunch, and not even a drop of water slid down her throat for hours. On top of that, she was mentally exhausted from all that had transpired in the last few hours. And now everything was finally taking a toll on her.
• But just as she stopped, so did the cars following her, and soon a bunch of men stepped out of those cars. Thea knew, looking at the lineup that it was futile for her to struggle. She had to accept her fate. But Thea felt miserable at this moment. She never thought that her life would be so full of regrets.
• "You can do whatever you want... just leave my parents out..." Thea tried to plea the men standing in front of her, but before she could complete her words, all the men bowed to her.
• "Young miss," all the men spoke up in unison.
• "Huh..." Thea was too flabbergasted to even speak.
• 'Young miss? Me?' Thea felt something was wrong, ‘Now what new trouble is brewing?’
• "I am sorry, but I think you are mistaken. I am just a nobody," Thea tried to clarify.
• "No, young miss. We are sorry that we came late."
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