Cross Lines

Chapter 33: The Call

The car stopped at the entrance of Emily Luo’s neighborhood. Maggie turned off the engine and placed her hands on the steering wheel, remaining silent. Emily Luo continued to sit sideways, not making any move to get out of the car.

After a while, Maggie’s emotions seemed to calm down. She turned to look at Dr. Luo, saying, “She’s already home, and there’s no danger. There’s a housekeeper there who can take care of her…”

“Maggie,” Emily Luo’s voice was very low, now tinged with resignation rather than the earlier mix of surprise and anger. “I know you’re concerned about me, but I can’t just abandon Qiqi.”

Maggie looked at her, seeing something deep and unfathomable in her beautiful eyes. “You don’t need to abandon her, but you can’t abandon yourself either.”

Dr. Luo blinked, her gaze slightly dazed as she looked at Maggie. Maggie calmly returned her gaze. “Go home and get a good night’s sleep.”

Emily Luo seemed to snap back to reality after a while, nodding with a calm expression as she got out of the car. She didn’t say anything more, and neither did Maggie. It was only when Dr. Luo’s figure disappeared from view that Maggie turned around and let out a deep sigh.

What will tomorrow bring? We’ll find out tomorrow.

The next morning, Maggie woke up to the sound of light rain outside. Is it raining? Spring must be near.

But overcast days tend to make one feel gloomy, and Maggie felt listless all day. The events from yesterday left her with an indescribable frustration. She had no motivation to work on her design drafts or anything else.

After a simple dinner of porridge, she looked at herself in the mirror. Her hair had grown quite long, almost reaching the nape of her neck. Maybe it was time for a trim to lift her spirits. With that in mind, Maggie grabbed her handbag, changed her shoes, and picked up a bag of fruit from the fruit store at the entrance before heading to Ryan Ding’s salon.

Because of the rain, there weren’t many people around. A few people were getting their hair done, while Ryan Ding and a few idle staff members were chatting together. When Maggie arrived, a familiar staff member quickly came over, taking the bag from her.

“Maggie, you’re treating us again?”

Maggie smiled but didn’t chat like usual. The young woman responsible for washing hair took Maggie’s coat, hung it up, and began washing her hair.

Since they were quite familiar and Maggie’s hair was usually managed by Ryan Ding himself, she just sat in the chair after her hair was washed, staring blankly at her reflection in the mirror. She seemed to have dark circles under her eyes.

Ryan Ding, munching on half a banana, approached with his toolkit. “Your hair’s grown quite fast.”

“Just a simple trim, I want to keep it long,” Maggie replied with a hint of weakness in her voice.

Noticing her lack of energy, Ryan Ding was a bit curious but didn’t ask further. “I’ll give you a half-C curl, otherwise, with this length, it’s hard to style or keep it neat.”

“Do as you see fit,” Maggie said, looking unmotivated. Ryan Ding didn’t push her for more details and started working on her hair. Maggie closed her eyes, trying to relax and clear her mind.

She dozed off a bit, nearly falling asleep, and was only jolted awake when Ryan Ding shook her head gently. “All done.”

Ryan Ding, confident in his work, didn’t ask for feedback. Maggie glanced in the mirror and was fairly satisfied with the result.

While cleaning up, Ryan Ding casually asked, “Hey, Maggie, how come you haven’t brought that beautiful lady from last time around?”

Maggie glanced at him warily through the mirror. “Why?”

“Just curious,” Ryan Ding shrugged.

Maggie’s expression fell. “I’m afraid—she might be hard to see again…”

“Why is that?”

Before Maggie could respond, her phone rang. She looked at the screen in disbelief—Dr. Luo’s name was clearly displayed. She looked up at Ryan Ding, who stared back in confusion.

“If you keep staring, she might hang up…”

Maggie quickly answered the call, and Emily Luo’s slightly anxious yet deliberately subdued voice came through. “Maggie, where are you? Are you free right now?”

“I’m at the salon. What’s up?”

There was a brief pause, and Emily Luo hesitated before speaking. “Oh—”

“What’s the matter? I’m done here.”

“Could you bring some cash over? I’ve encountered a problem…”

“Sure, where are you? How much do you need?”

Maggie responded promptly without asking too many questions. Emily Luo explained hesitantly, “I’m at the corner of Min’an Street, east of Walmart. I accidentally hit someone’s dog…”

A bead of sweat formed on Maggie’s forehead, and she involuntarily felt embarrassed. “They’re asking for over ten thousand, but I only brought five thousand. Could you bring over ten thousand? I’ll transfer it back to you as soon as I get home—”

“Got it, I’ll be right there.”

Maggie immediately realized this was a scam. She stood up and told Ryan Ding, “Something urgent came up. Can you find someone to take me there?”

Ryan Ding volunteered immediately, “I’ll take you. I’ll bring Ah Yong along.”

Maggie looked at the tall, intimidating Ah Yong with his green mohawk—he looked scary at first glance but was actually quite harmless. She reluctantly agreed, “Alright…”

The place wasn’t far, and they stopped at an ATM along the way. Maggie withdrew the cash and soon arrived. From a distance, she saw Emily Luo’s white Audi standing out in the night.

The SUV parked, and Maggie jumped out to see a middle-aged woman in a raincoat standing by the roadside, glaring. It was already late, and with the rain, there were only a few people standing in front of a convenience store, watching from afar.

Dr. Luo’s car was parked askew, but there was no sign of her. Maggie walked to the front of the car and saw a pale yellow puppy lying in the waterlogged street, whimpering. Dr. Luo was crouched beside it, holding a checkered umbrella over the puppy to shield it from the rain.

Seeing Maggie, Dr. Luo set the umbrella on the ground to cover the puppy, stood up, and approached Maggie with an awkward expression. “I’m sorry, Maggie…”

“It’s okay. What happened?”

Maggie looked at the middle-aged woman and ushered Dr. Luo under her umbrella. “It’s too dark. I didn’t see how I hit it. She says the dog was a gift from her daughter and demands fifteen thousand. I offered to get money, but she won’t let me leave…”

Understanding the situation, Maggie nodded. “You stay in the car for now. I’ll talk to her…”

“Just give her the money and don’t argue. It’s my fault, so I should pay. Let her take the dog to the hospital quickly…”

Dr. Luo was anxious, glancing back at the injured puppy. Maggie reassured her and sent her back to the car.

The dog’s owner appeared unfriendly. Maggie greeted her with a smile, “Ma’am, I’m sorry for injuring your pet.”

“Stop talking and give me the money! It’s getting late, and I need to get home!”

The woman was impatient, glaring at Maggie. Ryan Ding and Ah Yong managed to find a small umbrella and squeezed under it, looking quite comical in the rain.

“Is this a Golden Retriever? How much did you buy it for?”

Maggie continued to smile, speaking casually. “This is a gift from my daughter in the U.S., cost several thousand dollars! You must pay me at least fifteen thousand! Anything less is unacceptable!”

Typical of such people, she showed no concern for the puppy on the wet ground, which continued to whimper. Maggie remained calm. “Does the dog have a license?”

The woman’s attitude softened slightly, her gaze evasive. “What’s it to you?”

“A dog of this type is not purebred. The market price is at most one thousand dollars. Your asking price is outrageous. How about we call the police? Our car is fully insured, and we can let the insurance company assess the damage and settle it.”

The woman’s eyes widened, and she yelled at Maggie, “Are you saying you’re not going to pay? The woman clearly said you should!”

“Ahem!”

Ryan Ding deliberately coughed loudly a few times. The woman turned to see two oddly shaped men standing under the small floral umbrella, looking rather strange in the rainy night. Her demeanor weakened.

“Ma’am, we don’t want to do this either. If the insurance company comes, you’d be lucky to get eight hundred.”

Maggie remained calm and persuasive. The woman hesitated, seemingly weighing her options. “One thousand is absolutely not enough… just a check-up at the hospital would be more!”

“Here’s what we’ll do. Give me the dog. I’ll give you two thousand. You can buy another one with that. The rest is a compensation for your trouble. If that works for you, I’ll give you the money now. Otherwise, we’ll involve the insurance company.”

Maggie's attitude was resolute and her performance spot-on. The woman glanced at the injured puppy on the ground, realizing that treating it would be costly, and decided it was easier to hand the situation over to Maggie. Reluctantly nodding, she muttered about her bad luck. Maggie ignored her complaints, took out her wallet, counted the money, and handed it over.

Seeing the woman leave, Emily Luo hurriedly got out of the car and looked at Maggie with confusion. "Why didn't she take the dog with her? Did you give her—"

"Two thousand, which is more than enough. People like her don’t care about the dog; she might just abandon it later."

Dr. Luo was incredulous, unable to believe this was acceptable.

Ryan Ding approached, "Miss Maggie—"

"You can go back now. I'll get home on my own."

Maggie cast a dismissive glance at Ryan Ding and Dr. Luo, signaling them to leave. Ryan Ding looked at her, feeling abandoned. Maggie paid him no mind, quickly sending him and Ah Yong away before turning her attention back to Dr. Luo. Dr. Luo was in a state of shock and embarrassment, finding the evening too chaotic to process.

Maggie took off her sweatshirt, folded it, and used it to wrap the injured puppy. She then picked it up and said, "Pet hospitals are probably closed by now. There’s one on Hedong Road where the owner seems to stay overnight. Let's head over there."

Emily Luo nodded immediately, not caring about anything else. She and Maggie got into the car and sped away into the night.