From Ashes to Hope) Chapter 37
We were finally rescued.
Relief and gratitude washed over us, our hearts filled with joy and
thankfulness for the SWAT officers.
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I watched as people embraced each other, some weeping, others showering
the officers with heartfelt “thank yous,” two simple words carrying a weight of
gratitude, expressing all the fear and suffering they had endured.
Some were overcome with emotion, unable to speak, only able to grasp the
officers‘ hands, their own hands trembling with gratitude.
Suddenly, I remembered the injured young beggar. She was lying on a
stretcher, her face pale but her breathing steady.
Relief washed over me, seeing that she was alive.
I rushed over to her, a joyful smile spreading across my face.
She pointed towards a tall tree in the distance.
I understood instantly, Emma’s phone must be hidden in that tree.
I ran towards the tree, my heart pounding with anticipation. When I reached
it, I was struck by its sheer size. I looked up, its dense canopy creating a green sky
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above.
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I paced around the tree, my heart filled with anxiety, but I couldn’t figure out
how to climb it. How had this small child managed to do it?
Defeated, I turned to find a police officer for help.
The officer, agile and swift, quickly scaled the tree.
He searched patiently, checking every nook and cranny.
After a thorough search, he finally found the crucial phone hidden in a tree
hollow.
He slid down the tree gracefully and handed me the phone, his face filled
with curiosity.“How did you manage to hide the phone here?” he asked. “It’s a
really good hiding spot.”
I pointed towards the young girl.“It was her,” I said, still amazed. “To be
honest, I never would have thought of it.”
I tried to turn on the phone, but the screen remained black.
It must be dead, I thought. After all we had been through, it was only natural
for the battery to be drained.
When I returned to the young girl, she took the phone and expertly pressed
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the power button with her small fingers.
To my surprise, the screen lit up.
It wasn’t dead, this clever girl had turned it off at a crucial moment.
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It dawned on me, of course. If the traffickers had a signal detector, it would
have easily located an active phone.
As the phone booted up, I eagerly checked the messages and was stunned to
see that the young beggar had successfully sent the distress message to the police
emergency hotline on her first attempt.
said.
I patted her head, my heart filled with admiration.“You are truly amazing,” I
Her eyes lit up at my praise, and a smile bloomed on her face.
It was a radiant, innocent smile, as if capable of dispelling all the darkness
around us.
Perhaps because she smiled too widely, it seemed to pull at her wounds, her
expression contorting in pain.
“Be careful, don’t strain your wounds, rest well,” I said, my voice filled with
concern, like a mother tending to her injured child.
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I handed the phone back to Emma.
She took it.
Just then, the phone rang unexpectedly.
It was Officer Lee.
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His familiar number on the screen filled me with a mixture of surprise and
unease.
“It’s my police officer friend,” I blurted out, my voice laced with confusion as
countless thoughts raced through my mind.
Emma, as if instinctively, answered the call and put it on speakerphone.
“Did
you get the phone?” a voice asked urgently from the other end.
The voice, carrying a sense of urgency, sent a chill down my spine.
My heart sank, a bad feeling gnawing at me.
I suddenly remembered that Officer Lee had recommended this trip. The
pieces of the puzzle started to fall into place, seemingly unrelated events now
connecting in a clear pattern.
I realized why I had been targeted as soon as I arrived in the ancient town.
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Could this all be an elaborate setup? The thought sent a shiver down my spine.
As Emma was about to express her gratitude, I quickly hung up the call.
She looked at me, her face full of confusion. I didn’t have time to explain, I
frantically searched for the commander of the rescue operation.
I weaved through the crowd anxiously and finally found the person in
charge.
He was a calm and capable middle–aged police officer, with a tall stature
and sharp eyes that radiated intelligence and determination, like a beacon of
light in the darkness, inspiring trust.
“Officer, I suspect that Officer Lee is involved!” I blurted out, my voice
trembling slightly as I explained my suspicions, showing him the messages and
call logs on Emma’s phone.
The officer frowned, his expression serious, taking the phone and
examining it carefully, clearly taking my concerns seriously.
He immediately called over someone and said, “Record everything this lady
said, don’t miss anything.”
He then turned to me, his eyes filled with appreciation.“You all played a
crucial role in cracking this cross–border human trafficking ring,” he said.
< (From Ashes to Hope…
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“No, it’s all thanks to the little girl,” I said, waving my hand dismissively. “She
was caught and brutally beaten while trying to send the message again.”
My voice choked with emotion as I thought of the little girl’s suffering.
The officer’s face softened with concern. He personally checked on the girl’s
condition.
“Also,” I added, remembering another detail, “the little girl was being forced
to beg by adults. I reported the situation to Officer Lee, but he couldn’t find
anything after a long investigation. Maybe those people are also involved in this
case.”
He assured me that they would investigate thoroughly and bring all those
involved to justice,
The rest of the investigation was out of my hands.
I stayed with the little girl, taking care of her wounds, watching her recover
day by day, her once thin frame gradually gaining weight.
Finally, the good news arrived. The case was solved, all those involved were
apprehended, including Officer Lee.
< (From Ashes to Hope…
