Chapter 4 PAWNS AND QUEENS
Maya came out of center and goes to near garden which was the part of center.She was pretending as she was so scared.
Lucy hugged her. But something felt wrong. Maya's hands were not shaking. Her eyes were too dry for someone who was scared.
That night, Lucy checked the center's security cameras again out curiosity that who gave her the drugs.
She saw it. 10 minutes before Maya came, a black hoodie was standing outside. Talking to Maya. Handing her something.
It was Romania. Little similar to ella . Lucy was confused what is happening.
Maya was sent by her. On purpose. To scare Lucy. To see if Lucy was still weak.
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*FLASHBACK - 3 YEARS AGO*
A dirty basement. 4 people were sitting. Drugs, money, and phones on the table.
In the center was Romania. She was not a big dealer yet. Just a small one. But she had big dreams.
Her group had 4 people. All her "friends" from college. They did small deals. They called themselves "The Shadows".
One day, a poor new girl came to them. She was desperate for money. She was a student. Her name was Ella.
Romania looked at her and smiled. "You can be useful," she said. "You look innocent."
Ella became the 5th member. The smallest one. The pawn.
Romania promised her, "Work for me. One day I'll make you rich. And if you get caught, I'll get you out."
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*BACK TO PRESENT*
After the center scene shifts to the jail where ella was prisoner.
In her jail cell, Ella got a letter. No name on it. Just one line.
`You talked too much in court. Now you have to be silenced.`
Ella's hands shook. Romania was going to kill her after getting her out on parole. Because Ella knew too much about the group. About Romania.
Ella was confused. Terrified.
Part of her wanted to go to Lucy. To confess everything. To ask for help.
But then she remembered Lucy's face in court. The hate. The disgust.
"Lucy will never believe me," Ella whispered to herself. "She hates me."
So she did nothing. She hid. She waited.
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*ANOTHER FLASHBACK*
The day of the wedding. 5 years ago.
Romania . She was caught with drugs. Her own cousin, Lucy stood up and told everyone.
The whole family looked at Romania like she was trash.
From that day, Romania didn't stay small. She became big. She left her 4 friends and built a bigger network. A real gang.
And Ella was just the first step in her plan to get to Lucy.
---
Lucy closed the CCTV footage. Her jaw was tight.
So Ella was a victim too. A pawn.
And Romania... Romania was the Queen.
Lucy looked at Anna. "We have to find Ella before Romania does."
Anna nodded. "But will she even talk to us?"
Lucy didn't answer. Because she didn't know.
*To Be Continued...*
