A breaking news alert popped up on my phone: [State University freshman lured overseas to work in an international cyber scam ring.] I was having lunch with my best friend, Chloe Davis. She glanced sideways at my screen. Immediately, her face broke into a massive, condescending grin. "Oh my god, that’s not your son, is it? I mean, your family is so broke, he’d definitely be the easiest target to brainwash." "But seriously, do not even think about asking me for ransom money. My husband needs our cash for his stock investments." Fuming, I locked my screen. Two minutes later, my son called me. [Mom, it’s bad. Aunt Chloe’s son got lured overseas by a scam syndicate. I heard they’re asking for a $300,000 ransom.] Right then, a text from my husband popped up. [Honey, brace yourself and get ready to console Chloe. Richard gambled away every last dime they had. They’re completely bankrupt.] I slowly put my phone down and turned to look at Chloe. She was laughing even harder now. "Oh my god, look at your face! Did the kidnappers just call you for the ransom?" I gave her a cold, slow shake of my head. The kidnappers definitely won't be calling me. You just sit tight and wait for your phone to ring. "No... it wasn't the kidnappers..." My mind was racing, trying to figure out how to break the news to her gently. But Chloe was laughing so hard she was clutching her stomach, wiping away tears while continuing to mock me. "Don't give me that! Look at how pale you are. Your cheap drugstore foundation is literally cracking." She found her own joke so hilarious she practically rolled out of her booth. The restaurant chair squeaked loudly under her shifting weight. "I'm telling you right now, Sarah, my family absolutely does not have money to lend you. And even if we did, it would take you a whole lifetime to pay us back." My head was spinning with rage, but she just kept blabbering. "You and your husband Tom are just two corporate slaves. You make pennies every month. Of course your kid would run off the second someone flashed a dollar sign in his face!" "If I were your son, I would've run away ages ago. Look at my Tyler. Why didn't he run off?" "Because my Richard is a powerhouse! My husband makes more in a month than you two make in a year. Tsk, tsk." "But nobody's money grows on trees. Even best friends need to keep their finances separate. I'm putting my foot down right now: I am not lending you a dime." My grip on my phone tightened. A thin layer of sweat had coated the back of my phone. It felt damp, sticky, and incredibly uncomfortable. I took a few deep breaths and set the phone down. I pulled out a napkin and wiped my palms. "Chloe, hypothetically... if something catastrophic happened to your family, would you swear to never ask me for a loan?" She let out an ear-piercing shriek of laughter. "Ahahahaha! What did you just say? Me? Ask you for money? Keep dreaming, Sarah. Are you really that desperate to see me beneath you?" I shook my head, exhausted. Chloe reached over and grabbed my hand. "Sarah, honestly, I advise you to just let him work over there." "With your family's pathetic bank account, your kid isn't going to find a good job after graduation anyway." "Do you really want him working like a dog for pennies, just like you?" "Who knows! Maybe he'll actually make some real money doing scams!" I violently snatched my hand back and yelled at her, "Are you out of your mind?! Do you have any idea how much they torture and beat those kids who get lured over there? Do you not watch the news?!" She shrugged, completely unfazed. "Well, poor kids need to be taught a lesson anyway. So what if he gets beaten? That's what he gets for having useless, broke parents." Okay. Fine. Since you want to be this vicious, I have absolutely no reason to show you any mercy. You can just wait for someone else to deliver the devastating truth. I called the waiter over for the check, ready to part ways. She pulled out her phone, smirking. "Like I said, financial boundaries. Don't think just because your family is in crisis I'm going to treat you to lunch. We're splitting the check." I gave a tight smile. "Of course we're splitting it. I'm not the type to take advantage of people. I hope you aren't either." She raised an eyebrow. "God wouldn't even give me the opportunity to take advantage of you, don't you think?" She bobbed her head, deliberately trying to piss me off. Right at that moment, a notification popped up in the university parents' group chat. Chloe’s son and mine were in the same program, so she received it too. [URGENT: A major incident has occurred. Several male students from our university have been lured overseas to international scam compounds under the false promise of high-paying jobs. The school will hold an emergency safety presentation this afternoon in the main auditorium. We strongly urge all local parents to attend.] Chloe immediately sat up straight, her eyes gleaming with excitement. "Oh my god, some real drama?! I am absolutely going to watch this." I had originally planned to work overtime this afternoon, and since I knew my son was safe, I didn't want to wade into this mess. But Chloe grabbed my wrist tightly. "Let's go, let's go! Your son got kidnapped, you need to meet the other parents! You can all trauma-bond together." Fine, let's go, I thought. I can't wait to see your face when you realize it's your son who's gone. We walked out to the restaurant's parking garage. "I'm not riding in your car," Chloe announced. "I'll drive mine. Riding in cheap cars makes me motion sick." I tilted my head but didn't respond. I got into my Honda, and as I drove past her, I saw her staring blankly at an empty parking spot. "Huh? Where's my car?" She looked back at me. "Maybe my car was just too luxurious, and one of Richard's friends borrowed it. I'll call him right now and tell him to bring it back." She dialed her husband's number. It rang and rang. No one answered. I slammed on the gas and sped off. Goodbye, my dearest best friend. You aren't getting that car back. Your beloved husband already gave it to his creditors to pay off his gambling debts. And don't you dare ride in my car. Cheap cars make you nauseous, remember? I glanced in my rearview mirror and saw Chloe, teetering in her three-inch designer heels, sprinting frantically after my car. She was waving her arms, screaming at the top of her lungs, "Sarah! Stop! Stop the car! Take me with you! Take me!" I pretended I didn't hear a thing and sped out of the parking lot. Chloe arrived at the university auditorium ten minutes after I did. Her hair was a windblown mess, and she stood at the entrance panting heavily, scanning the room. The second she saw me, she aggressively stomped over. I smiled at her. "Oh hey, did your husband bring your car back? That was pretty fast!" "Screw you! You did that on purpose! You heard me screaming for you, and you purposely didn't stop!" She collapsed into the seat next to me, ripped a water bottle out of her designer purse, and chugged it aggressively. I suppressed a laugh. "What? You were screaming for me? But you said you couldn't ride in my cheap car. Why were you calling me?" She waved me off irritably. "Enough, just drop it." I tugged her sleeve. "How did you get here?" Her chest heaved with fury. "Don't even get me started! My husband is being so weird. He suddenly froze my credit cards, and I couldn't even link a rideshare app." "Your family is so wealthy and you only rely on credit cards? You don't have any cash on you at all?" She rolled her eyes disdainfully. "What do you know? We rich people have credit limits you can't even imagine. Plus, our cash flow is always tied up in investments making more money. I wouldn't expect a poor person like you to understand. Just shut up and let's listen to what the administrators have to say." Did she literally run all the way here? The more I thought about it, the funnier it got. I zipped my lips and looked straight ahead. On the stage, the university representative gave a broad overview of scam awareness and explained the current crisis. A photo was projected onto the massive screen behind them. "As you can see, parents, this photo was secretly taken by a bystander near the border crossing. We can't clearly make out how many students are in the group. We ask that all parents try to contact their children right now so we can begin the process of elimination." Chloe stretched her neck out like a giraffe and practically yelled, "Look at the one in the blue hoodie! Sarah, that is one hundred percent your son." "What did I tell you? Your family is broke, so your kid was easy prey." "Hahaha, it's definitely him! Big head, thick neck, that's your boy! I have 20/20 vision, I'd never mistake that." I let out a heavy sigh. She really had the ultimate mother's blind spot. Her son had completely let himself go after starting college. He had gained forty pounds and looked incredibly sloppy, but she was completely oblivious to it. I nudged her arm. "Do you want to try calling your son?" She squinted at me mockingly. "What, do you honestly think my son would go commit fraud for a few extra pennies?" "Fine, fine, I'll call him just to prove it to you!" She pulled out her phone and dialed Tyler's number. It rang for a long time. No one picked up. She laughed awkwardly. "I bet his dad picked him up. Those two are practically joined at the hip. They go fishing together all the time. It's so boring, I never go with them." My heart hammered in my chest. Are they really out fishing? I quickly texted my husband: [Did you know Richard takes his son out fishing all the time?] My husband replied instantly: [Fishing? Yeah right. That's just the excuse they give Chloe. Those two go to sketchy underground strip clubs and brothels together.] I bit my lower lip hard, glancing over at Chloe, who had just pulled out her compact mirror to fix her makeup. How could she possibly care about her makeup at a time like this? Tom sent another text: [Do not tell Chloe this, but Richard is completely bankrupt. He owes millions to loan sharks. I bet Tyler knows too. The whole family has been keeping Chloe in the dark.] A cold sweat broke out on my back. I couldn't even fathom how Chloe was going to react when she found out the truth. But honestly, I was a little eager to see it. The administrator on stage raised the microphone again. "If any parents have been unable to reach their children, please come to the front desk after the presentation to register. Um, would any parents like to say a few words? If not, we will conclude—" Before the administrator could finish, Chloe shot up from her seat, waving her hand wildly. "I have something to say! Me, me, me!" The administrator leaned back, clearly startled, but maintained a polite smile. "Alright, let's welcome this mother to the stage to share her thoughts." Chloe practically skipped up the stage in her heels, her face glowing with pride. She snatched the microphone right out of the administrator's hand. A sharp burst of feedback blasted through the speakers. Everyone in the auditorium covered their ears. "Ow! Watch it!" "Who is this woman? She has no manners." "Seriously, she's acting like this is her personal stand-up special." "Let's see what kind of garbage comes out of her mouth." Chloe cleared her throat and began a speech that completely shattered everyone's perception of human decency. "Hello, teachers and parents. I am Tyler Davis's mother. My name is Chloe. Chloe, as in flawless luxury. I’m sure you’ve all heard of us, considering our family is incredibly wealthy. Tyler has the highest monthly allowance of any student in his class. I’m sure your children are deeply envious of Tyler and have probably mentioned our family to you at home. As a successful and capable parent, I’m here to share my personal perspective. I believe that if your child was lured away to work in a scam ring, the primary responsibility lies entirely with you, the parents! If you weren’t so useless and actually provided your kids with enough money, would they have been tricked? At the end of the day, you people never deserved to have kids in the first place. Useless people breed useless children. Even if they hadn’t been kidnapped, they’d be completely worthless after graduation anyway. Honestly, they might as well go run scams. Who knows, they might actually make some real money for once." By this point, the crowd was in an uproar. Some parents were shouting curses at her, while others muttered furiously. "Who the hell do you think you are?! How dare you judge us?!" "Trash! Who knows what kind of dirty money your family makes. You need to be investigated!" "You're just a housewife spending your husband's money! What are you acting so high and mighty for?!" "Get off the stage!" The entire auditorium erupted into a furious chant. "Get off the stage!" "Get out of here!" But Chloe just tilted her chin up, flashing a sickeningly arrogant smile. "See? This is exactly how poor people act. You deserve to be suppressed! You deserve to be mistreated! And look what happened. Your kids got trafficked. They're probably getting beaten half to death by cartels right now. They are suffering for your sins! I advise you all not to even bother trying to raise ransom money. Hundreds of thousands of dollars? You couldn't scrape that together if you sold your own blood. For the sake of the living, I highly suggest you just cut your losses and abandon your kidnapped children. If your bodies are still capable, just make a new kid. If not, just accept your miserable lives. It's called cutting your losses!" "Screw your losses!" a father roared. "You don't get to talk about our children like that!" "Yeah! Who do you think you are?!" "Watch it be her own son who got kidnapped. I'd love to see her brag then!" "Honestly, the kid in the photo looks exactly like her son Tyler. Same thick neck and chubby face!" Chloe suddenly raised the microphone, and another piercing shriek of feedback echoed through the hall. Over the noise, she screamed, "Impossible! My family is rich! My son would never be desperate for money! The blurry boy in that photo is Sarah Miller's son! His name is Jake!" But right at that exact moment, the administrator turned and stared at the auditorium doors. Through her lapel mic, her voice carried clearly across the sudden silence. "Jake Miller? Do you need something?" Chloe's face twisted into an expression uglier than if she had just swallowed dirt. She whipped her head around toward the entrance. There, my son Jake strode confidently into the auditorium. "Excuse me, I'm looking for my mom. I heard the presentation was over. I didn't realize it was still going on, I'm so sorry." The administrator gave him a warm smile. "It's alright, come on in." My son stood tall, his posture straight, looking a bit leaner than usual. He had probably been training hard for his sports team recently. The administrator smiled at him. "Are you here to ask your mom for your allowance? You need to be a bit more frugal, you know." Jake nodded politely. "Yes, I know. But actually, I'm here to take my mom shopping. I recently picked up a part-time job tutoring, and I saved up some money. I wanted to buy my mom a beautiful new outfit." The expressions of all the parents in the room instantly melted into pure warmth. "What an incredible kid." "He's the absolute perfect son." "I really need to get my boy to be friends with him." But Chloe’s mouth fell open, stretching wider and wider in sheer disbelief, before her eyes filled with toxic venom. Someone in the audience yelled out, "Hey, Tyler's mom! Weren't you absolutely certain that Jake was the one who got trafficked? He's standing right here! So who do you think that boy in the photo is?!"
? Continue the story here ?? ? Download the "MotoNovel" app ? search for "391482", and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel