Free Web NovelChapter 468: Chapter 468: Turning the Tables
Melody Summers was incredibly annoyed. She had no idea what was going on today. ’It feels like every terrible thing is happening at once!’
If Saul Archer and Jay Lowell didn’t leave soon, she couldn’t guarantee she wouldn’t attack them.
Melody Summers’ hand slipped into her pocket, her fingers hesitating between the gun and the taser.
Seeing this, Jay Lowell quickly stepped forward to play the peacemaker. "Hey, pretty lady, no need to be so hostile. We can talk this out calmly! Cameron Summers and his son told us your family has plenty of money. This little bit is nothing to you!"
"How about this, miss? My brother and I won’t make things difficult for you. For the supplies Cameron Summers and his son owe, let’s just convert it all to cash, principal plus interest. You just give us a total of 1,000,000. How does that sound?"
Melody Summers rolled her eyes and retorted, "Not a chance. I’m not giving you a single cent. Take your IOUs and report it to the police. If that doesn’t work, go ahead and sue us in court!"
The moment Melody finished speaking, Saul Archer lunged forward.
A folding knife had appeared in Saul Archer’s hand. With a grim expression, he said to Melody, "Little girl, it seems you’d rather do this the hard way. Do you really think my brother and I wouldn’t hurt a woman?"
In Saul Archer’s mind, Melody Summers was just a young girl putting on a tough act. ’Girls like her are like kittens with their fur on end—all hiss and no bite. Just a little scare and she’ll surely cough up the money obediently.’
With that thought, Saul Archer brandished the folding knife at Melody and sneered, "Listen, little girl, I’ll give you some friendly advice: a wise person knows when to yield. You’d better hand over the money, or else... we can’t guarantee what might happen to your family..."
But in the next instant, the words died in Saul Archer’s throat—
Melody Summers was holding a handgun, its muzzle pressed squarely against his forehead.
The cold, hard pressure on his forehead told him everything he needed to know—this was a real gun.
The sneer on Saul Archer’s face froze solid. His facial muscles started to twitch uncontrollably in fear, creating a comical sight.
Melody stared at Saul Archer, her expression unreadable. "Threatening me with my family," she said in an icy tone. "Do you have a death wish?"
Melody was already on edge about the video that had affected her family, and Saul’s words had just pushed her over the edge.
At the sight of this, Jay Lowell was so frightened he couldn’t even hold on to the IOUs. The slips of paper fluttered from his grasp, scattering all over the hallway floor.
His legs went weak. He leaned against the wall to stay upright, his voice trembling as he said to Melody, "Don’t... don’t shoot... It’s a misunderstanding... a total misunderstanding!"
Just as Melody was about to say something, the elevator doors slid open, and Officer Tate strode out.
Officer Tate paused, taking in the scene. ’What in the world is going on here?’
Seeing the uniformed officer, Saul Archer lost all his previously feigned composure. He wanted to scream for help, to beg Officer Tate to save him, but he was terrified that any sound might startle Melody and cause the gun to go off, blowing a new hole in his head.
Saul’s soul was torn between screaming and staying silent, and all that came out was a comical whimpering sound.
Jay Lowell, on the other hand, scrambled frantically over to Officer Tate, yelling, "Help! Officer, help me!"
Tristan grabbed Jay Lowell’s arms in a quick motion, warning in a low voice, "Stay put!"
With that, Tristan hauled Jay Lowell over next to Saul Archer and asked Melody, "What’s all this about?"
Melody recounted everything that had just happened from beginning to end.
She pointed to the folding knife clutched in Saul Archer’s trembling hand. "He pulled a knife and was going to stab me," she said to Officer Tate. "This counts as self-defense, right?"
At her words, the folding knife fell from Saul’s hand with a CLATTER. Seeing Officer Tate’s thoughtful gaze fixed on him, he stammered, "I-I was just trying to scare her... I never planned to actually stab her! We’re just here to collect a debt, we’re not thugs!"
Officer Tate frowned. "Violent debt collection is against the law. Are you aware of that?"
Saul Archer and Jay Lowell lowered their heads, not daring to speak. Of course they knew violent collection was illegal, but most debtors felt too guilty to call the police after a little intimidation.
Officer Tate continued, "Besides, these are gambling debts. That kind of debt isn’t protected by law, which means it’s not legally enforceable. Do you understand?"
Saul and Jay were already in a panic, desperate for the whole thing to be over. Hearing Officer Tate’s words, they started nodding furiously. "Yes, yes, we know we were wrong! It’ll never happen again..."
Melody sneered at their act and chimed in, "Officer Tate, these two are running an illegal gambling ring. The amount involved is huge. You should arrest them and lock them up for a few years!"
That stack of IOUs added up to several thousand pounds of rice and coal. At current market prices, that was easily worth hundreds of thousands.
Cameron Summers couldn’t have been the only one gambling with them; there must have been others. The total amount involved would be even higher. Based on sentencing guidelines, locking these two up for a few years wouldn’t be a problem at all.
Saul and Jay’s hearts hammered in their chests. Jay Lowell hastily denied it, "No, no, no! We weren’t gambling!"
Saul Archer quickly chimed in, "Right, we didn’t gamble! We were just joking with this lady... In fact, these IOUs are fake! Yeah, they’re fake..."
Hearing them try to squirm their way out, Melody twisted the knife. "Is that so? But as I recall, fabricating debts is also a major crime. You demanded a million from me right off the bat, which counts as extortion of a huge sum. You’d still get locked up for a few years for that!"
Saul and Jay looked like they wanted to cry but couldn’t even manage tears. All they could do was repeatedly admit their mistake. "We were wrong, we were wrong! Please, be merciful and let us go this once!"
The two of them were genuinely regretting it now. Who could have guessed that while Cameron Summers and Clark Summers were such pushovers, their relative would be such a hard-ass?
If they had known, they never would have come to Apartment 1606 to try their luck today!
Officer Tate looked at them grimly. "You two go back to your apartment for now. Don’t go anywhere. I’ll be over in a little while to handle your case."
Hearing this, Saul and Jay didn’t even dare to pick up the IOUs scattered on the floor. They simply turned and fled in terror.
After the two had gone, Melody sighed. As she began gathering the scattered IOUs from the hallway floor, she said with a weary expression, "I don’t know what it is about today. It feels like I’ve run into every possible trouble."
Officer Tate helped her pick up the papers. "It’s always darkest before the dawn," he said. "Get all the bad stuff out of the way now, and the rest of the year will be smooth sailing. You have to believe that!"
Melody managed a faint smile. "I hope so..."
After collecting all the IOUs, the two chatted as they made their way down to the 15th floor and knocked on the door of Apartment 1504.
A moment later, the door opened.
It was Chloe Sharp. She looked like she was in the middle of filming a short video. She wore a Western-style formal gown and had exquisite makeup on, looking absolutely beautiful.
When she saw Melody and Tristan, who was in his police uniform, standing at her door, she froze for a second before the smile on her face slowly vanished.
