The alley was much deeper than it had appeared from the outside. Old courtyard walls lined both sides, their tops tangled with withered vines.
It seemed to run behind a row of houses, and few people ever came this way. Moss covered patches of the ground along the roadside.
Su Jiuyue had just caught up with Jiaojiao and was about to take her back when she caught sight of someone out of the corner of her eye. Mother and daughter instinctively pressed themselves against the wall, avoiding the man’s notice.
A tall, gaunt man was striding toward the end of the alley with a bulging burlap sack slung over his shoulder.
The sack’s size and shape…
Su Jiuyue’s heart clenched, and she instinctively followed him.
Just as the courtyard gate creaked shut behind him, a tiny shoe slipped out from the bottom of the sack.
A child’s shoe.
The blood in Su Jiuyue’s veins seemed to freeze.
This was…
A kidnapping.
“Mommy, something inside that uncle’s sack is moving!”
Sharp-eyed as ever, Jiaojiao whispered. She even tugged on Su Jiuyue’s sleeve, wanting to walk closer.
“Let’s go take a look…”
“Don’t move!”
Almost by instinct, Su Jiuyue yanked her daughter behind her. Cold sweat instantly broke out across her palms.
Her heart pounded wildly, and her mind was in chaos.
There was a child in that sack.
Human traffickers.
She and Jiaojiao were both in danger.
But losing a child…
That was a lifetime of pain for any parent.
Still, what could she do? She was only a widow, physically weak, with a five-year-old daughter to protect.
How could she possibly fight human traffickers?
If something happened to her, what would become of Jiaojiao?
Conscience and fear battled fiercely inside her.
Just then, faint voices drifted from inside the courtyard.
Gritting her teeth, Su Jiuyue pulled Jiaojiao behind a pile of junk stacked against the wall and crouched down with her, stuffing all their shopping bags beside the little girl.
“Jiaojiao, listen to Mommy. Stay right here. Don’t move, and don’t make a sound.”
She lowered her voice, every muscle in her body taut.
“I’m just going to take a look. Don’t make any noise, okay?”
Perhaps frightened by her mother’s serious expression, Jiaojiao obediently nodded.
Only then did Su Jiuyue quietly drag over a stone and climb onto it.
The courtyard wall wasn’t especially high, and she barely managed to peek over it.
The yard was small, cluttered with broken planks and rusted sheets of metal. Inside the main house, the tall, skinny man was talking to a short, stocky man with a scar across his face.
Their voices were low, but she managed to catch fragments.
“…This one’s a good-looking kid. He’ll fetch a nice price.”
“When’s the vehicle getting here?”
“Any minute now. Old Guai’s waiting at the intersection. Once this job’s done, we’ll move somewhere else.”
“What about the others inside?”
“Take them all. Someone’s waiting for them in the south.”
A chill shot up Su Jiuyue’s spine.
There wasn’t just one child.
Good heavens…
It was an entire trafficking ring.
She lowered herself from the wall and leaned against the cold earthen bricks, her mind racing.
Call the police?
She didn’t even know where the city police station was.
And even if she did, by the time she found officers and brought them back, the traffickers would be gone.
They’d already said the vehicle was almost here.
Find help?
The alley was deserted. There were plenty of people near the department store, but by the time she gathered anyone, the commotion would alert the traffickers.
As panic overwhelmed her, the courtyard gate creaked open again.
Su Jiuyue immediately crouched down, pulling Jiaojiao behind her and making herself as inconspicuous as possible.
It was the scar-faced man.
He glanced around before hurrying toward the opposite end of the alley, probably to meet the vehicle.
Moments later, the tall, skinny man stepped outside as well.
He was walking straight toward where Su Jiuyue and Jiaojiao were hiding.
Su Jiuyue nearly stopped breathing.
At that moment, a tiny hand gently tapped her arm.
Looking down, she saw that Jiaojiao had somehow picked up a wooden stick.
She was clutching one taller than herself—and had even found another one for her mother.
The little girl wasn’t afraid in the slightest. Her eyes sparkled with excitement.
Silently mouthing the words, she said,
“Mommy, go get him!”
Su Jiuyue stared at her daughter, then at the approaching man, then at the heavy stick in her own hands.
Her head buzzed.
Could someone please explain how her precious little girl had become so fearless?
Still…
There was only one man here.
Maybe this was her chance.
A surge of courage rushed through her.
Taking the stick, she whispered,
“Hide again. Cover your eyes. You’re not allowed to look.”
With that, she took a deep breath and pressed herself tightly against the wall. Sweat soaked her grip on the stick, and her heart pounded so hard it felt ready to burst.
The tall, skinny man hummed an off-key tune as he sauntered toward her hiding place.
Just before reaching it, he stopped.
Peeking around the corner, Su Jiuyue realized he was unfastening his belt.
He was about to relieve himself.
Now!
She burst from the shadows, swung the stick with every ounce of strength she had, and smashed it into the back of his head.
Thud!
The man’s body stiffened.
Without even letting out a groan, he collapsed to the ground.
Looking at the motionless figure, Su Jiuyue trembled uncontrollably from fear and adrenaline.
Afraid he wasn’t fully unconscious, she clenched her teeth, squeezed her eyes shut, and struck him several more times across the head, back, and legs until she was certain he wouldn’t be waking up anytime soon.
Only then did she finally let out a shaky breath.
She crouched beside him and quickly searched his pockets.
A ring of keys.
A wad of loose cash and ration coupons.
She grabbed the keys, stuffed the money into her own pocket, and hurried back to Jiaojiao.
“Jiaojiao, let’s go!”
Abandoning all the things they had bought, she grabbed Jiaojiao’s hand with one hand while using the other to unlock the courtyard gate.
The yard was empty.
The door to the main house stood slightly ajar.
Su Jiuyue rushed over and shoved it open.
The sight before her made her stomach churn.
The dim, damp room reeked of mold and urine.
Seven or eight children huddled in one corner.
The oldest couldn’t have been more than ten, while the youngest looked only three or four.
Their hands and feet were tightly bound with coarse hemp rope.
They were all thin, yellow-faced, terrified, and vacant-eyed, with filthy rags stuffed into their mouths.
The burlap sack lay open in the middle of the room.
Inside was a boy of about six or seven.
His eyes were tightly shut, a bruise marked his forehead, and he appeared to have been drugged unconscious.
There was no time to examine him further.
Su Jiuyue rushed to the children, pulled out the small knife she carried with her, and quickly cut through the ropes binding their wrists and ankles before removing the cloths from their mouths.
“Don’t be afraid. I’m here to save you.”
She tried to keep her voice calm, even though her own legs were nearly giving way.
“If you can walk, follow me! Hurry! Once we’re outside, shout for help!”
The older children reacted first, struggling to their feet.
The younger ones were still crying, but the older children grabbed their hands and pulled them along.
Su Jiuyue picked up the unconscious boy from the sack.
He was frighteningly light.
She hoisted him over her shoulder with one arm and grabbed Jiaojiao’s hand with the other.
“Let’s go!”
The group burst through the door and sprinted toward the department store.
They had only reached the middle of the alley when the roar of a vehicle’s engine came from behind them.
Brakes screeched.
Then an enraged shout echoed through the alley.
“They’re gone! The kids escaped! After them!”