Escape from Mr. Whitman (Emma and Theodore) novel Chapter 333

But the girls had no intention of letting her go. If anything, their grip on her only tightened.

Jared shouted, jumped out of the car, and rushed to help. Suddenly, another car screeched up and skidded to a stop. Before the wheels had even settled, several men in black jumped out and blocked Jared’s path. Without a word, they started to beat him.

Jared could barely protect himself. Meanwhile, Cecilia was being yanked by her hair, someone else pulling open the car door from the inside.

They dragged Cecilia out of the car.

“Give it back! Pay what you owe! You liar!”

Chaos erupted—kicks and punches flying from all directions.

Neither Jared nor Cecilia had any chance to fight back. In the confusion, they couldn’t even tell who was hitting them.

The two groups came and went like a whirlwind, beating them senseless before piling back into their cars and speeding off into the night. Just before leaving, one of the girls shouted, “Remember to pay up! Or next time, it’ll be worse!”

Jared and Cecilia collapsed onto the pavement, too battered to get up.

Since graduation, Jared had never experienced anything like this. He wanted to call the police, but Cecilia stopped him.

“No, Jared, don’t call the cops!” Cecilia’s hair was wild, her face bruised and swollen, makeup smeared into a grotesque mask. Her lips were so puffy she could barely speak, “If you call the police… I’ll get in trouble too, won’t I…”

Not only had she scammed those girls, she had a whole litany of other problems hanging over her head. The last thing she wanted was to provoke Young Rossi and have all her secrets exposed.

Jared’s face was swollen beyond recognition. Blood dripped from his nose, and his mouth was full of the taste of iron. He spat, and two teeth clattered onto the concrete.

“Damn it, those bastards really went for it! If I ever find out who they are—” He glared at Cecilia. “You’re just going to let this go?”

Tears streamed down Cecilia’s battered face as she shook her head and sobbed, “I don’t know what to do… I really don’t…”

Jared let out a long sigh. “I get it. If it had worked out, it would’ve just been business. Taking a little extra on the side is nothing.”

“Jared…” Cecilia’s voice trembled. “You’ve always been the only one who really understands me. You’re the only one who’s still on my side.”

Emma watched through the window as Latham spoke quietly to Larson outside. The driver had locked the doors, so she couldn’t hear a thing.

The conversation was brief—mostly Latham talking while Larson listened—and then it was over. Larson got into the car and sat beside her.

Emma glanced at him, full of questions.

Larson chuckled, “You’re something else.”

“You’re something else!” Emma mimicked him. “I know exactly what you were talking about. All taken care of, aren’t they?”

Larson laughed out loud. “Can’t keep anything from you, can I?”

He sighed. “You said it yourself—if you take someone’s money, you pay it back. So whoever took it, make sure they’re the ones to return it.”

No need to get his own hands dirty for something like this. All it took was a little nudge in the right direction—a couple of extra cars, a few more bodies—and the so-called ‘creditors’ would show up on their own. Otherwise, how else was Jared supposed to be taught a lesson? Of course, neither Jared and Cecilia nor those girls chasing after what they were owed would ever know who was really pulling the strings.